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UC-NRLF 


KAPillCAL  SKRIBS 


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PA BISK 


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LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

University  of  California. 

RECEIVED    BY    EXCHANGE 


Class 


IOWA   BIOGEAPHICAL   SEKIES 

EDITED   BY    BENJAMIN   F.    SHAMBAUGH 


JOHN    CHAMBERS 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


IOWA    BIOGRAPHICAL    SERIES 

EDITED     BY    BENJAMIN    F.     SHAMBAUGH 


JOHN    CHAMBERS 


BY 


JOHN    CARL    PARISH 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


THE  STATE  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY  OF  IOWA 
IOWA    CITY    IOWA    1909 


.0 


^t^ 


V 


0^^ 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

In  the  biographies  of  Robert  Lucas  and 
John  Chambers,  as  written  for  the  Iowa 
Biographical  Series  by  Dr.  Parish,  may  be 
found  the  outlines  of  the  general  history  of 
the  Territory  of  Iowa,  since  the  administra- 
tions of  these  two  Governors  span  all  but 
one  year  of  the  Territorial  period. 

Moreover,  the  careers  of  Lucas  and  Cham- 
bers—  the  one  born  in  Virginia  and  expe- 
rienced in  Ohio,  the  other  bom  in  New  Jer- 
sey and  experienced  in  Kentucky  —  suggest 
and  in  a  measure  illustrate  the  intermingling 
of  northern  and  southern  peoples  and  insti- 
tutions in  the  early  history  of  Iowa. 

But  the  larger  interest  in  these  biogra- 
phies will  be  discovered  in  the  view  which 
they  reveal  of  that  wonderful  Westward 
Movement  which  peopled  the  Mississippi 
Valley  and  laid  the  foundations  of  an  em- 
pire of  American  Pioneers. 

Benj.  p.  Shambaugh 

Office  of  the  Superintendent  and  Editor 

The  State  Historical  Society  of  Iowa 

Iowa  City 


194867 


AUTHOR'S  PREFACE 

The  story  of  John  Chambers,  second  Governor 
of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  reaches  from  the 
coast  State  of  New  Jersey  during  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  out  through  the  State  of  Kentucky 
in  the  time  of  its  early  settlement  and  growth 
to  the  pioneer  Territory  of  Iowa  in  the  days 
when  it  was  making  awkward  but  positive 
strides  toward  Statehood.  It  runs  through 
more  than  seventy  of  the  years  of  early  devel- 
opment of  the  Nation,  and  of  that  development 
it  tells  a  part. 

To  the  State  of  Kentucky  he  gave  more  than 
forty  of  his  active  years;  to  the  Territory  of 
Iowa  less  than  five.  Yet  these  scant  five  years 
constitute  the  most  useful  period  of  his  public 
service.  In  them  came  to  fruition  the  expe- 
rience of  the  long  preceding  period;  and  in 
them  came  the  opportunity  offered  by  a  posi- 
tion of  greater  influence. 

The  writing  of  the  present  volume  was  under- 
taken upon  the  suggestion  of  Dr.  Benj.  F. 
Shambaugh,  Superintendent  of  The  State  His- 


X  AUTHOR'S  PREFACE 

torical  Society  of  Iowa  and  editor  of  the  Iowa 
Biographical  Series.  Upon  a  preliminary  trip 
to  Kentucky,  Dr.  Shambangh  found  in  the  pos- 
session of  Mrs.  Henry  Chambers  of  Louisville 
an  unpublished  manuscript  autobiography  of 
John  Chambers  and  other  valuable  letters  and 
papers  which  were  kindly  loaned  to  The  State 
Historical  Society  of  Iowa  —  the  autobiography 
for  purposes  of  publication,  and  the  other 
papers  for  use  in  the  preparation  of  a  biogra- 
phy. Further  material  was  collected  in  Iowa, 
in  various  towns  of  Kentucky,  and  in  Wash- 
ington, D.  C. 

The  author  desires  to  make  the  most  grate- 
ful acknowledgments  to  Mr.  John  Chambers  of 
Louisville,  Kentucky,  a  grandson  of  the  Gov- 
ernor, to  his  mother  Mrs.  Henry  Chambers, 
and  to  Mr.  Harry  Brent  Mackoy  of  Covington, 
Kentucky,  a  great  grandson  of  Governor  Cham- 
bers, who  have  not  only  made  accessible  valu- 
able manuscript  sources  but  have  done  all  in 
their  power  to  give  assistance  and  encourage- 
ment to  the  work. 

Acknowledgements  are  due  to  Colonel  Reuben 
T.  Durrett  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  for  unre- 
stricted access  to  his  large  private  library  which 
contains  files  of  newspapers  and  rare  books 


AUTHOR  ^S  PREFACE  xi 

obtainable  nowhere  else  and  without  which 
parts  of  the  present  volume  could  not  have 
been  written. 

For  the  loan  of  letters  and  for  other  valuable 
assistance  the  author  is  indebted  to  Mrs.  Han- 
nah Chambers  Forman  of  Chicago,  Mrs.  H.  H. 
Woodall  of  Covington,  Kentucky,  Mr.  Throck- 
morton Forman  of  Cincinnati,  Mr.  John  W. 
Townsend  of  Lexington,  Kentucky,  Mr.  W.  H. 
Mackoy  of  Covington,  Kentucky,  Dr.  Thomas 
Pickett  of  Maysville,  Kentucky,  to  Colonel 
Maltby  and  to  Mr.  Lucien  Maltby  and  his  family 
who  now  live  in  the  old  home  of  John  Chambers 
at  Cedar  Hill  near  Washington,  Kentucky,  and 
to  the  officials  of  the  Carnegie  Institution  of 
Washington,  the  Library  of  Congress,  and  the 
Office  of  Indian  Affairs  in  Washington,  D.  C. 

In  particular  the  author  is  grateful  for  the 
kindly  aid  and  encouragement  given  by  the 
editor  of  the  series.  Dr.  Benj.  F.  Shambaugh, 
from  the  inception  of  the  work  down  to  the 
reading  of  the  last  proofs. 

John  Carl  Pabish 


CONTENTS 

I.    From  Ireland  to  Kentucky 1 

II.     Early  Life 12 

III.  A  Kentucky  Lawyer 18 

IV.  The  War  of  1812 28 

V.    A  Decade  of  Relief  Laws 38 

VI.     The  Desha  Trial 48 

VII.    Legislative  Affairs 65 

VIII.     Congressman  from  Kentucky 79 

IX.     The  Log  Cabin  Campaign 94 

X.    With  Harrison  in  the  White  House  106 

XI.    Beyond  the  Mississippi 115 

XII.     Governor  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa  .  127 

XIII.    State  Government  and  Boundaries  .  .  143 

XrV.     Indian  Affairs 162 

XV.    The  Years  of  Twilight 190 

Notes  and  References 203 

Index 265 


PLATES 

John  Chambers,  from  an  oil  portrait  .  .  frontispiece 
John  Chambers,  from  an  ivory  miniature 

opposite     26 
Hannah  Taylor  Chambers,  from  an  ivory- 
miniature  opposite    26 


^     OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


I 

From  Ireland  to  Kentucky 

The  lines  upon  which  is  threaded  the  ancestry 
of  our  people  run  westward.  They  come  from 
the  far  side  of  the  Atlantic  and  cross  to  our 
eastern  seaboard.  A  few  going  no  further  wind 
their  succession  of  generations  about  a  group  of 
New  England  villages  or  find  their  way  clear 
and  distinct  down  through  the  families  of  the 
Old  Dominion.  But  most  of  these  lines  now 
reach  out  beyond  the  mountains.  Sometimes 
from  their  inland  stretching  they  waver  back 
again  to  the  coast,  but  more  often  they  follow 
mountain  gap  and  westering  river  until  they 
have  made  their  way  to  the  Mississippi  Valley, 
peopled  the  great  plains,  and  reached  the  utter- 
most confines  of  the  land.  Along  these  wavering 
lines  run  the  records  of  battle  and  bloodshed, 
flood  and  famine,  suffering  and  sickness,  peace 
and  prosperity.  Crossing  and  recrossing,  min- 
gling and  intermingling,  they  interlace  the  con- 
tinent; and  their  aggregate  is  the  story  of  the 
American  Nation. 


2  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

The  line  of  paternal  ancestry  of  John  Cham- 
bers, second  Governor  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa, 
runs  back  through  four  generations  to  the  Prov- 
ince of  Ulster,  in  Ireland.  Here  his  great 
grandfather  lived;  and  it  is  a  family  tradition 
that  his  forbears  of  the  preceding  century  had 
crossed  over  from  Scotland  where  they  belonged 
to  the  Highland  clan  of  Cameron  and  bore  the 
clan  name.^  In  the  county  of  Antrim,  in  this 
Irish  Province  of  Ulster,  there  was  born  in  the 
year  1716  James  Chambers,  the  third  son  of 
Eowland  and  Elizabeth  Chambers  and  the 
grandfather  of  John  Chambers.^ 

About  four  years  later  Eowland  Chambers 
with  his  wife  and  children  bade  farewell  to 
Ireland  and,  crossing  the  Atlantic,  came  at  last 
to  the  rugged  valley  of  the  Susquehanna  in  the 
colony  of  Pennsylvania.  Some  miles  below 
Harrisburg  he  bought  a  farm  of  about  four 
hundred  acres,  located  on  the  eastern  bank  of 
the  Susquehanna  Eiver  and  north  of  Conewago 
Creek.3  A  hint  of  his  occupation  is  given  by  the 
fact  that  the  place  was  known  as  Chambers' 
Ferry.  The  remainder  of  his  days  were  spent 
in  this  locality;  and  here,  in  what  is  now  Dau- 
phin County,  his  son  James,  whom  he  had 
brought  with  him  from  Ireland  at  the  age  of 
four  years,  grew  to  manhood.     It  was  some- 


FROM  IRELAND  TO  KENTUCKY     3 

where  near  the  year  1738  that  James  Chambers 
married  an  Irish  girl  named  Sarah  Lee,  whom 
her  grandson  describes  as  **a  woman  of 
strong  and  cultivated  mind  and  imperious  tem- 
per''* 

The  children  of  James  and  Sarah  Chambers 
were  seven  in  number;  and  among  them,  born 
about  1744,  was  Rowland,  father  of  Governor 
John  Chambers.'  Now  it  happened  that  Row- 
land's mother  had  a  sister,  Betty  Lee,  who  had 
married  one  Joseph  Forman  and  was  living  in 
New  York.  And  so  to  that  busy  port,  in  his 
young  manhood,  Rowland  Chambers  was  sent 
to  become  a  clerk  in  his  **  Uncle  Josey's'*  mer- 
cantile establishment.  Thus  the  line  ran  back 
for  a  time  to  the  coast. 

After  a  few  years  Joseph  Forman  died;  but 
Rowland  remained  in  the  city  and  became  con- 
nected with  business  that  required  him  to  make 
a  number  of  voyages  to  European  ports.  It  was 
perhaps  not  far  from  the  year  1768  that  he  mar- 
ried Phoebe  Mullican,  an  orphan  girl  living  on 
Long  Island.  Not  long  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  Revolutionary  War  he  left  New  York  and 
formed  a  partnership  with  an  Englishman,  John 
Martin  by  name,  who  owned  a  farm  and  mills 
on  the  Raritan  River  in  Somerset  County,  New 
Jersey.    The  place  was  known  at  the  time  as 


4  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Bromley  Bridge.  Besides  the  mills  they  opened 
a  large  retail  store  and  began  a  prosperous 
business  in  the  products  of  the  country. 

But  the  prosperity  was  short  lived;  the  ap- 
proach of  hostilities  between  the  colonies  and 
the  mother  country  brought  calamitous  results. 
One  day  there  came  a  message  to  Eowland 
Chambers  from  his  partner  asking  him  to  come 
to  New  York  City  with  all  the  money  he  could 
collect.  The  unsuspecting  Chambers  complied, 
and  Martin,  after  calmly  receiving  the  funds, 
informed  him  that  he  was  hiding  from  the 
American  authorities  and  that  there  was  in  the 
harbor  at  that  moment  a  boat  ready  to  sail  with 
him  for  England.  In  vain  did  Chambers  urge 
an  adjustment  of  their  business  affairs. 

The  thing  that  appealed  to  Mr.  John  Martin 
was  the  necessity  of  getting  out  of  the  country, 
and  he  would  hear  to  no  delay.  He  promised, 
however,  to  send  from  England  full  evidence  of 
the  ownership  of  Chambers  to  the  entire  prop- 
erty in  New  Jersey.  He  sailed  away  and  soon 
afterward  died  in  England,  without  having  re- 
deemed his  promise.  Chambers  settled  up  the 
affairs  of  the  firm,  paid  all  the  debts,  and  then 
discontinued  the  store.  The  mills  he  still  kept 
in  operation.^ 

Actual  warfare  had  now  commenced.     The 


FKOM  IRELAND  TO  KENTUCKY     5 

Continental  Congress  had  drawn  up  and  signed 
the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and  through- 
out the  little  strip  of  colonies  men  were  laying 
aside  the  plough  or  closing  their  business  houses 
and  taking  up  arms.  Rowland  Chambers,  ar- 
dent in  his  support  of  the  cause  of  the  Ameri- 
can colonies,  left  his  mills  and  joined  the  Revo- 
lutionary Army,  finding  service  in  the  New 
Jersey  militia.^ 

One  noonday  lightning  struck  the  mills  at 
Bromley  Bridge,  and  when  night  shut  down 
there  were  left  only  blackened  embers.  Hence 
forth  the  name  Bromley  Bridge  gradually 
passed  away  and  the  place  came  to  be  known  as 
the  Burnt  Mills.  Disasters  now  did  not  come 
singly.  On  the  first  tour  of  army  duty  the  un- 
accustomed exposure  so  crippled  Rowland 
Chambers  with  rheumatism  that  he  was  finally 
obliged  to  leave  the  service  after  he  had  for 
some  time  persisted  in  his  duties,  being  lifted 
to  and  from  his  saddle. 

His  heart  was,  however,  no  less  with  the 
cause  than  before;  and  he  found  new  channels 
for  the  exercise  of  his  patriotism.  He  now  gave 
his  time  to  the  securing  of  supplies.  The  prod- 
ucts of  his  farm  went  to  support  the  starving 
army  and  his  means  helped  to  clothe  it.  And, 
by  reason  of  his  generosity,   each  year  that 


6  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

brought  the  Eevolution  nearer  to  a  close  saw 
further  depletion  of  the  Chambers  fortune. 

In  the  year  1780,  on  the  sixth  of  October, 
John  Chambers,  the  fourth  son  of  Rowland,  was 
born.  In  the  days  of  his  infancy  the  long  strug- 
gle with  England  ended  and  peace  came  upon 
the  land.  But  the  evils  of  war  often  show  them- 
selves most  clearly  in  the  aftermath.  The  men 
who  had  for  months  and  years  followed  the  for- 
tunes of  battle  returned,  restless  and  unsettled 
in  habits,  to  neglected  farms  and  disorganized 
business  affairs;  and  the  process  of  rebuilding 
was  slow  and  difficult. 

In  the  years  of  his  connection  with  the  army 
and  his  subsequent  association  with  army  offi- 
cers Rowland  Chambers  fell  into  ways  of  intem- 
perance that  boded  ill  for  the  recovery  of  his 
former  circumstances.  His  vigorous  mind  nat- 
urally drew  him  into  the  affairs  connected  with 
the  organization  of  government ;  and  meanwhile 
matters  at  home  were  neglected  and  almost 
abandoned.  Poverty  and  ruin  came  apace.  The 
final  act  in  the  dissolution  of  the  family  fortune 
came  when  the  heirs  of  John  Martin  crossed 
over  from  England  and  claimed  the  land  upon 
which  Rowland  Chambers  and  his  family  lived. 

In  this  time  of  dire  discouragement  there 
came,  out  of  the  West,  Rowland  ^s  oldest  son 


FROM  IRELAND  TO  KENTUCKY     7 

William.  Years  before,  William  had  crossed 
the  mountains  and  made  his  way  into  the  land 
of  Kentucky;  and  his  glowing  account  of  the 
frontier  now  brought  hope  to  the  despairing 
family.  It  was  a  voice  ** behind  the  ranges'* 
that  had  been  calling  since  the  time  of  Boone  — 
a  call  that  had  in  it  a  warning  of  danger  that 
was  a  challenge  to  the  hardy,  that  told  of 
much  to  risk  and  much  to  gain.  It  was  a  call 
that  passed  by  the  weakling  and  drew  to  the 
Licking  Valley  men  long  of  limb  and  stout  of 
heart.  Years  before  the  voice  had  whispered 
to  the  struggling  men  in  the  mountains  of  wes- 
tern Virginia;  and  shouldering  their  rifles  the 
gaunt  mountaineers  strode  down  into  the  val- 
ley that  offered  them  a  more  plentiful  living. 
Again  it  called  and  restless  spirits  from  nearer 
the  shore  line  —  men  whose  means  had  van- 
ished with  the  War  —  packed  their  few  posses- 
sions and  traversed  the  mountain  passes  into 
the  new  West. 

So  the  call  came  to  Rowland  Chambers,  and 
it  found  a  willing  response.  He  sold  the  stock 
and  remaining  property,  and  packed  beds,  fur- 
niture, clothing,  and  provisions  into  two  large 
Jersey  wagons.  They  did  not  make  the  journey 
alone.  The  family  of  Robert  Davis  —  who  had 
married  Phoebe,  the  oldest  daughter  of  Row- 


8  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

land  Chambers  —  and  the  family  of  Peter 
Davis,  his  brother,  accompanied  them  —  each 
with  a  stont  wagon  and  team  of  horses.^ 

The  little  party  left  New  Jersey  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1794  and  began  the  slow  and  laborious 
journey  across  the  mountains  of  Pennsylvania. 
Over  the  mountains  and  along  streams,  by 
rocky  gorges  and  scarcely  broken  roads  they 
made  their  way  —  the  men  and  boys  walking 
the  entire  distance,  while  the  women  and  chil- 
dren rode  in  the  wagons.  Eowland  himself 
went  by  way  of  New  York  City,  and  it  was  many 
days  before  he  overtook  the  party  in  the  Monon- 
gahela  country.  For  several  weeks  they  were 
delayed  at  the  Monongahela  Eiver  waiting  for 
boats;  and  here  they  found  themselves  in  the 
midst  of  the  Whiskey  Insurrection  which  was 
at  its  height  in  western  Pennsylvania  in  the 
late  summer  of  that  year. 

At  length  they  secured  boats  and  embarked. 
They  were  weeks  upon  the  water,  for  the  river 
trip  was  in  those  days  a  laborious  passage.  It 
was  particularly  so  in  time  of  low  water  when 
the  shifting  river  channel  and  the  numerous 
submerged  rocks  and  sunken  trees  made  it  not 
only  difficult  but  dangerous.  From  the  Monon- 
gahela they  entered  the  Ohio  at  Pittsburg. 
Down  its  waters  the  boats   carried   the   emi- 


FROM  IRELAND  TO  KENTUCKY  9 

grants,  past  Wheeling,  past  the  town  of  Mari- 
etta at  the  mouth  of  the  Muskingum,  and 
past  the  Scioto  where  the  town  of  Portsmouth 
had  not  yet  sprung  into  existence.  At  length 
they  reached  a  place  where  on  the  southern 
side  a  little  creek  emptied  its  waters  from  the 
lime-rock  hills  above  into  the  curve  of  the  great 
river.  Here  was  the  port  of  Limestone  —  fa- 
mous among  all  those  who  knew  the  West  as  the 
point  of  entrance  into  Kentucky  for  Ohio  River 
emigrants.^ 

To-day  the  town  of  Maysville,  the  county  seat 
of  Mason  County,  Kentucky,  stretches  along 
the  shore  for  three  miles  and  fills  the  lower 
slopes  back  to  where  the  wooded  lime  hills  rise 
abruptly.  But  the  town  of  Maysville  does  not 
to-day  occupy  a  position  so  important  with 
respect  to  its  surroundings  as  did  the  landing 
place  of  Limestone  in  the  days  of  1794.  On 
the  opposite  shore,  the  hills  of  Ohio  parted  in 
a  gap  where  a  few  years  later  the  famous  road 
of  Ebenezer  Zane  from  Wheeling  across  Ohio 
broke  through  to  join  at  Limestone  the  trail 
into  the  interior  of  Kentucky.*^ 

It  was  not  mankind  that  first  traced  that 
pathway  south  from  the  Ohio  Eiver.  In  the 
bygone  days  when  the  buffaloes  roamed  the 
prairies   east   of   the   Mississippi    River   they 


10  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

sought  out  and  wore  deep  into  the  soil  a  track 
that  wound  up  the  hill  from  the  river  and  across 
into  the  heart  of  the  rich  blue-grass  pasturage. 
And  man,  coming  after,  saw  the  winding  rib- 
bon trail  and  made  it  his  own.  Thus  began  the 
old  pioneer  road  by  which  thousands  who  de- 
scended the  Ohio  climbed  the  hills  back  of 
Limestone  and  reached  the  midst  of  the  far 
famed  land  of  Kentucky. 

Passing  along  this  road — later  so  well  known 
as  the  Maysville  Turnpike  —  the  men  who  had 
come  by  the  water  route  reached  Lexington  and 
there  met  those  other  hardy  souls  who  had 
struggled  through  the  Cumberland  Gap  and 
toiled  along  Boone  ^s  Wilderness  Eoad  north- 
ward into  the  land  of  promise.^ ^  But  almost  at 
the  beginning  of  the  road  from  the  river  was  a 
town  that  played  no  small  part  in  the  early 
history  of  Kentucky.  When  the  traveler  who 
landed  at  Limestone  reached  the  uplands  back 
of  the  town  he  soon  found  himself  in  the  vil- 
lage of  Washington. 

It  was  into  this  vicinity  that  Simon  Kenton 
came,  away  back  in  the  year  before  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence  was  signed,  and  raised 
a  crop  of  corn  and  built  a  cabin  about  a  mile 
from  the  present  site  of  the  town.^^  j^  1785 
the  town  was  laid  out,  and  in  the  year  following 


FROM  IRELAND  TO  KENTUCKY    H 

it  was  organized  by  the  legislature  of  Vir- 
ginia.^ ^  If  Limestone  be  styled  the  northeast 
gateway  into  Kentucky,  it  may  perhaps  be  said 
that  the  keepers  of  the  gate  dwelt  in  the  village 
upon  the  hill.  It  was  the  county  seat  of  Mason 
Coimty  (which  in  early  days  reached  from  the 
Licking  Kiver  to  the  Big  Sandy)  and  into  its 
court  rooms  there  gathered  a  coterie  of  lawyers 
whose  fame  was  known  throughout  Kentucky. 
Business  houses  sprang  up  and  it  became  a 
prominent  place  of  trade  for  the  population  of 
a  large  surrounding  territory. 


II 

Eaely  Life 

Late  in  the  month  of  October,  1794,  Eowland 
Chambers  and  his  family  disembarked  at  Lime- 
stone and  turned  their  steps  toward  the  uplands 
of  Kentucky.  It  is  perhaps  not  to  be  doubted 
that  as  they  toiled  up  the  hills  back  of  the  town 
they  paused  now  and  then;  for,  as  the  road 
turned  back  and  forth  in  its  sinuous  way,  they 
could  look  down  upon  the  roofs  of  the  town  and 
out  over  the  tops  of  trees  that  burned  red  and 
yellow  and  brown  on  either  shore  and  see  run- 
ning smoothly  between  the  broad  waters  of  the 
Ohio. 

Once  upon  the  heights,  however,  the  land  of 
their  wayside  dreams  spread  out  before  them; 
and  the  thought  of  the  noble  river  that  had 
brought  them  thither  faded  from  their  minds 
as  their  eyes  fell  upon  the  promised  land.  They 
had  not  traveled  far  when  the  town  of  Wash- 
ington came  into  view.  Strung  along  both  sides 
of  the  road  were  more  than  a  hundred  houses, 
sheltering  a   sturdy  and  active  pioneer  com- 

12 


EARLY  LIFE  13 

munity.  In  this  year  of  1794  one  Lewis  Craig 
built,  on  the  brow  of  a  little  declivity  that 
sloped  down  to  the  east  side  of  the  road,  a  court- 
house whose  ancient  walls  still  speak  of  the  days 
of  the  town's  early  fame.^*  And  while  these 
walls  rose  and  took  form  from  the  lime  rocks  of 
the  surrounding  hills,  there  walked  into  the  vil- 
lage a  fourteen  year  old  boy  whose  life  was 
associated  with  the  building  before  he  was  out 
of  his  teens  and  whose  voice  for  near  half  a 
century  rung  frequent  in  its  halls. 

Rowland  Chambers  settled  at  once  in  Wash- 
ington. Young  John  Chambers  had  not  been 
fortunate  in  his  educational  advantages.  As  he 
himself  expressed  it,  he  could  scarcely  read  or 
write  intelligibly  and  his  language  was  **  cor- 
rupted and  mixed  up  with  a  sort  of  *low 
dutch'  ''  from  the  associations  of  his  earlier 
boyhood  days  in  New  Jersey.^'  To  aid  in  the 
support  of  the  family,  John  found  an  opportu- 
nity to  clerk  in  the  store  of  a  man  named  Moore, 
who  had  just  come  to  Washington  and  had 
opened  up  a  small  stock  of  goods.  His  employer 
paid  for  the  boy's  board  in  exchange  for  his 
services.  Later,  on  somewhat  the  same  basis, 
he  clerked  for  a  Mr.  Wiggins. 

Thus  prosaically,  and  with  little  chance  for 
mental  development,  the  winter  of  1794  passed. 


14  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

In  the  following  spring  the  older  brother  Wil- 
liam, who  had  pointed  the  way  to  the  West, 
again  came  forward  in  the  role  of  a  godfather 
and  offered  to  send  John  to  school  at  Transyl- 
vania Seminary  in  Lexington.  In  March,  1795, 
the  boy  entered,  and  attended  the  school  until 
the  summer  vacation  in  July.  At  this  time  a 
difficulty  existed  between  the  President  of  the 
institution  (Mr.  Harry  Toulman)  and  the  Trus- 
tees. The  doubt  as  to  the  resumption  of  the 
school,  together  with  the  perhaps  more  vital 
fact  that  his  brother  could  not  see  his  way  clear 
to  continue  his  support,  led  him  to  return  home. 
These  four  months,  then,  present  the  sum  total 
of  the  higher  scholastic  education  of  John 
Chambers.  Never  again  did  the  opportunity 
come  for  a  renewal  of  his  studies  —  a  fact  which 
he  regretted  and  lamented  to  the  end  of  his 
days. 

His  return  to  the  household  at  Washington 
was  not,  apparently,  attended  with  cordiality 
on  the  part  of  his  father.  In  his  Autobiography 
he  tells  of  his  home-coming  as  follows : 

I  determined  to  return  home,  to  which  my  father 
yielded  with  manifest  displeasure,  and  was  very  stern 
and  distant  with  me  when  I  got  home.  I  found  he  was 
cultivating  a  little  field  of  corn,  &  the  morning  after 
my  return  I  got  up  early  and  fed  &  watered  his  old 


EARLY  LIFE  15 

horse  and  went  to  ploughing —  Nothing  was  said, 
and  after  several  days  diligent  labors  I  had  put  the 
little  field  in  good  order,  and  then,  for  the  first  time 
went  down  town,  where  I  found  a  new  store  just 
opening  under  the  firm  of  Brownson  and  Irvin,  and 
soon  became  their  assistant  behind  the  counter.  In 
all  these  employments  a  part  of  the  agreement  was 
that  they  were  to  pay  my  boarding  at  home,  so  that  by 
early  rising  I  could  always  make  my  mother's  morn- 
ing fires  and  bring  water  for  the  days  consumption.^^ 

It  was  not  long,  however,  until  Rowland 
Chambers  and  his  wife  removed  from  Wash- 
ington to  Augusta,  where  their  daughter,  Mrs. 
Robert  Davis,  was  now  living.  But  John  re- 
mained where  he  was  and  for  two  years  sold 
goods  across  the  counter  of  the  village  store. 

There  came  a  change  in  the  fortunes  of  the 
young  clerk  in  the  year  1797.  The  position  of 
Clerk  of  the  Washington  District  Court  was 
then  held  by  a  lawyer  named  Francis  Taylor.^  ^ 
In  the  latter  part  of  this  year  Mr.  Taylor,  de- 
siring a  deputy,  prevailed  upon  the  employers 
of  John  Chambers  to  let  the  young  man  go  into 
the  Clerk's  office  in  that  capacity.  He  agreed 
with  John  to  board  and  clothe  him,  and  urged 
the  value  of  the  use  he  could  make  in  his  spare 
moments  of  Taylor's  library  and  in  particular 
of  his  law  books.  An  indenture  until  he  at- 
tained his  majority  was  proposed  which,  says 


16  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

('hambers,  ^'I  agreed  to,  with  the  remark  that 
an  Indenture  of  that  kind  would  do  very  little 
good,  as  if  a  sense  of  duty  did  not  bind  me,  the 
indenture  would  not,  and  I  never  heard  of  the 
indenture  afterward ^\^® 

On  the  18th  of  October,  1797,  John  Chambers 
took  the  oath  of  office  required  of  the  Deputy 
Clerk  and  began  his  work.^^  Here  was  an 
occupation  both  congenial  and  profitable  and 
it  seems  to  have  elicited  his  most  diligent  ef- 
forts. During  the  hours  unoccupied  in  record- 
ing cases  and  performing  other  duties,  he  ap- 
plied himself  to  the  study  of  law.  At  the  same 
time,  during  his  eighteenth  year,  he  served  as 
Clerk  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Town 
of  Washington.2<^  Thus  was  he  acquiring  be- 
fore he  was  out  of  his  teens  an  invaluable 
training  for  his  life  work. 

He  must  have  performed  his  duties  to  the 
eminent  satisfaction  of  Mr.  Taylor,  for  in  the 
spring  of  1800  he  withdrew  to  his  farm  on  the 
Ohio  Eiver,  leaving  Chambers  to  carry  on  the 
office  and  receive  the  fees.  Taylor  still  nomi- 
nally retained  the  clerkship  in  hopes  that  it 
would  some  time  develop  into  a  position  of 
greater  value.  This  change  afforded  Chambers 
a  fair  living,  the  fees  in  the  first  year  amount- 
ing to  somewhat  less  than  four  hundred  dollars. 


EARLY  LIFE  17 

Out  of  this  sum  he  supported  himself  and  sent 
a  considerable  portion  for  the  use  of  his  mother 
at  Augusta  in  the  neighboring  county  of 
Bracken. 

The  three  years  in  which  John  Chambers  had 
had  access  to  the  library  of  Francis  Taylor  had 
been  well  spent.  He  had  not  only  read  a  great 
deal  of  law  but  he  had  spent  many  hours  with 
books  of  a  general  nature.  He  reached  his 
twentieth  year  in  October  of  1800  and  in  the 
next  month  was  given  a  license  to  practice  law.^' 
Thus  ended  his  score  of  years  of  apprentice- 
ship; and  with  the  century  he  began  his  career 
as  a  lawyer. 


Ill 

A  Kentucky  Lawyer 

John  Chambers  came  early  into  association 
with  the  profession  of  law.  He  was  only  seven- 
teen when  he  entered  the  office  of  Francis  Tay- 
lor and  helped  record  the  trials  before  one  of 
the  busiest  district  courts  in  Kentucky;  and  he 
had  not  yet  attained  his  majority  when  he  came 
into  possession  of  all  the  rights  and  privileges 
that  pertained  to  the  bar.  He  retained  his 
position  as  Deputy  Clerk  and  began  to  gather 
a  considerable  practice  in  the  inferior  courts. 
Soon  he  was  enabled  to  bring  his  father  and 
mother  back  to  Washington  to  live  with  him.^^ 
During  the  session  of  1801-1802  the  legisla- 
ture of  Kentucky  abolished  the  District  and 
Quarter  Session  Courts  and  established  a  sys- 
tem of  Circuit  Courts  in  their  stead.  The  clerk- 
ship of  this  new  court  was  an  office  of  some  re- 
muneration, and  two  candidates  immediately 
appeared.  One  was  Thomas  Marshall,  who  had 
been  Clerk  of  the  Quarter  Session  Court,  and 
the  second  was  Francis  Taylor,  Clerk  of  the 

18 


A  KENTUCKY  LAWYER  19 

old  District  Court.  John  Chambers  had  now 
been  performing  the  duties  of  Clerk  for  several 
years,  and  knew  the  work  thoroughly.  His 
friends  urged  him  to  become  a  candidate  for 
the  new  office.  The  same  advice  was  finally 
given  him  by  one  of  the  three  judges  in  whom 
the  power  of  appointment  was  vested.  This 
judge  promised  Chambers  his  own  vote  and 
expressed  the  belief  that  one  of  the  other  judges 
would  also  vote  for  him.  Upon  these  assurances 
Chambers  entered  the  field.^^ 

He  was  at  once  denounced  for  opposing  the 
candidacy  of  Francis  Taylor.  But  he  expressed 
the  belief  that  in  the  years  of  his  deputy  clerk- 
ship he  had  rendered  quid  pro  quo  and  that  jus- 
tice did  not  require  that  he  refuse  to  be  a  can- 
date  for  any  office  for  which  Francis  Taylor 
had  aspirations.  There  were,  however,  further 
complications  in  the  matter.  During  the  pre- 
ceding year  the  young  and  lovely  Margaret 
Taylor,  a  half  sister  of  Francis  Taylor,  had 
come  out  from  Maryland  to  visit  her  brother. 
The  Deputy  Clerk  forthwith  lost  his  heart,  and 
at  the  time  of  the  clerkship  appointment  the 
two  were  engaged  to  be  married  but  had  told  no 
one  of  the  fact.  In  his  Autobiography  Cham- 
bers thus  describes  the  outcome  of  this  inter- 
esting situation: 


20  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

I  consulted  her  about  withdrawing  from  the  contest 
as  the  evident  effect  of  it  was  to  estrange  her  brother 
and  myself  and  insure  his  opposition  to  her  fathers 
consent  to  our  marriage.  She  met  the  question  as 
only  such  a  woman  could.  She  said  my  withdrawal 
and  our  subsequent  marriage  would  give  rise  and 
plausibility  to  the  imputation  that  she  was  sold  to  me 
as  the  price  of  my  withdrawal  from  the  contest,  and 
altho  she  knew  her  brother,  being  an  only  son,  had 
great  influence  with  her  father,  she  did  not  fear  it. 
She  had  been  raised  in  his  bosom  from  her  very  in- 
fancy, without  a  mother,  and  she  knew  he  had  confi- 
dence in  her  judgment  and  prudence  and  would  not 
sacrifice  her  happiness  under  any  influence  that  could 
be  brought  to  bear  upon  him.  Mr.  Taylor  was  elected 
Clerk  and  I  soon  after  informed  him  of  my  engage- 
ment to  his  sister,  and  stated  my  object  in  doing  so, 
to  be  to  give  him  time  to  communicate  with  his  father, 
as  his  sister  &  myself  were  both  about  to  address  him 
on  the  subject,  the  reply  was  very  stern  and  to  the 
effect  that  he  would  immediately  send  his  sister  home 
to  her  father.  I  told  him  such  had  been  her  wish,  but 
that  her  health  was  then  very  delicate  and  I  had 
earnestly  advised  her  against  encountering  the  jour- 
ney of  500  miles  on  horseback  (then  the  only  means 
of  travel),  he  answered  that  she  could  as  well  make 
the  journey  then  as  when  she  came  to  Kenty  I  re- 
minded him  that  more  than  half  the  journey  had  then 
been  made  on  the  river  and  that  her  health  was  then 
good,  he  persisted  however  in  saying  that  she  should 
return  immediately  to  her  father,  and  upon  my  tell- 
ing him  that  in  that  case  I  should  accompany  her,  he 


A  KENTUCKY  LAWYER  21 

answered  abruptly  that  I  should  not  do  it  —  here  I 
thought  forbearance  ought  to  stop  and  I  told  him  so, 
and  that  I  would  in  defiance  of  him  or  anybody  else 
go  with  her,  and  that  any  attempt  to  obstruct  me 
would  be  fatal  to  who  ever  made  it —  That  if  he 
would  treat  her  kindly  until  her  fathers  pleasure  was 
know[n],  that  it  was  her  determination  &  mine  for 
the  present  to  submit  to  it.  I  heard  no  more  of  her 
being  sent  away,  and  in  due  time  her  father  answered 
her  &  her  brothers  &  my  letters,  regret  [t]ing  that  she 
had  placed  her  affections  upon  a  young  man  who[m] 
he  did  not  know  and  could  not  judge  of,  and  espe- 
cially one  whom  her  brother  disapproved  of.  To  Mr. 
Taylor  he  expressed  his  regret  at  what  had  taken 
place,  but  said  he  had  raised  that  daughter  without  a 
mother  and  she  had  inspired  him  not  only  with  the 
most  unbounded  affection,  but  with  great  confidence 
in  her  judgment  and  prudence,  and  to  her  he  was 
willing  under  all  circumstances  to  commit  her  fate 
in  the  matter  of  her  marriage,  and  that  his,  Mr.  Tay- 
lor's opposition  to  her  marriage  he  hoped  would  at 
once  cease. 2* 

On  June  IG,  1803,  they  were  married  at  Mr. 

Taylor's  house  —  Chambers  himself  describing 

it  as  **a  melancholy  scene"  whereat  **one  young 

man  at  my  request,  and  one  young  lady  at  hers, 
attended.'' 25 

The  failure  to  secure  the  appointment  as 
Clerk  was  perhaps  the  best  thing  that  could 
have  happened  to  John  Chambers.    He  turned 


22  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

his  full  attention  now  to  the  practice  of  law, 
making  rapid  strides  in  his  profession.  The 
dockets  of  the  Mason  County  Circuit  for  these 
years  have  apparently  not  been  preserved.  The 
only  records  which  give  any  clue  to  the  amount 
of  business  enjoyed  by  individual  members  of 
the  Mason  County  bar  are  two  manuscript  vol- 
umes entitled  Record  of  Personal  Actions  and 
covering  the  years  1803,  1804,  and  1805.2^  An 
examination  of  this  official  record  shows  that  in 
the  October  term  of  1803  somewhere  near  sev- 
enty-five cases  came  up  before  the  Circuit  Court 
of  Mason  County.  In  about  thirty  of  these 
John  Chambers  was  the  counsel  for  the  plain- 
tiff .^"^  In  the  September  term  of  the  following 
year,  out  of  a  total  of  fifty-three  cases  Cham- 
bers was  employed  by  the  plaintiff  in  twenty- 
three;  while  the  remaining  thirty  cases  were 
divided  among  six  different  attorneys.^^  In  the 
September  term  of  1805  thirty-one  cases  were 
tried,  and  in  twenty  of  these  actions  Chambers 
appeared  for  the  plaintiff;  while  lawyers  of 
such  prominence  as  Adam  Beatty,  Will  Mc- 
Clung,  Alexander  K.  Marshall,  Martin  P.  Mar- 
shall, and  others  divided  the  remaining  eleven 
among  them.^^  The  records  give  no  indication 
of  the  counsel  for  the  defense.  When  it  is  con- 
sidered that  John  Chambers  was  at  this  time 


A  KENTUCKY  LAWYER  23 

between  the  ages  of  twenty-three  and  twenty- 
five,  and  that  the  Mason  County  Circuit  con- 
tained one  of  the  strongest  bars  in  the  Conunon- 
wealth,  the  above  record  would  seem  to  be  an 
index  of  rather  remarkable  legal  success. 

Chambers  had  not  been  married  four  years 
before  he  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of 
his  wife  Margaret.  She  died  on  March  4,  1807, 
and  left  no  children.^^  Some  months  later  he 
made  a  visit  to  the  home  of  his  father-in-law, 
Ignatius  Taylor,^*  at  Hagerstown,  Maryland; 
and  his  own  account  of  his  meeting  with  Han- 
nah Taylor,  the  half  sister  of  his  first  wife,  is 
too  finely  naive  to  be  omitted.  It  is  given  here 
verbatim. 

On  a  subsequent  visit  to  Maryland  I  found  your 
dear  and  excellent  mother,  just  in  the  full  bloom  of 
womanhood,  admired  by  every  one,  and  sought  after 
by  some  gay  dis[s]apated  and  unpromising  young 
men  of  "the  first  families"  I  at  once  saw  her  danger, 
her  mother  had  died  two  or  three  years  before  and 
she  was  at  the  head  of  her  fathers  family.  I  advised 
her  aunts  and  sisters  to  caution  her  against  two  young 
men  particularly,  as  unworthy  of  her,  but  the  answer 
was,  they  were  young  men  of  great  promise  and  well 
connected  and  would  be  good  matches  for  any  girl  in 
the  County.  My  first  wife  had  been  dead  but  a  few 
months  and  I  felt  the  delicacy  of  proposing  so  soon 
to  marry  again.     I  pondered  seriously  upon  it,  and 


24  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

ask[ed]  myself  the  question  shall,  I  leave  this  young 
and  lovely  creature  to  be  sacrificed  to  a  reckless  sot, 
or  enter  the  lists  and  carry  her  off,  to  wait  longer  may 
be  fatal  to  her  future  happiness.  I  hesitated  no  longer 
and  in  a  few  days  she  flew  to  my  arms  for  affection 
and  protection,  and  no  wife  ever  more  deserved  or 
enjoyed  both  —  here  let  me  remark  that  both  the 
young  gentlemen,  I  had  wished  her  to  avoid,  married 
lovely  girls  whose  parents  were  rich  (one  of  them  a 
cousin  of  your  mother)  and  ended  their  respective 
carries  [careers]  before  middle  age'  in  great  poverty 
and  perfectly  besotted.^^ 

The  marriage  took  place  on  October  29,  1807, 
It  must  have  been  about  this  time  that  Cham- 
bers determined  to  build  himself  a  home.  With- 
drawn a  little  from  the  row  of  houses  that  con- 
stituted Washington,  was  a  hill  sloping  in  a 
long  gradual  descent  to  a  road  parallel  to  the 
Maysville  Pike.  On  the  crest  of  this  hill,  facing 
due  east,  John  Chambers  erected  a  well  built 
frame  house  that,  somewhat  remodeled,  still 
stands  proudly  holding  its  own  against  the  de- 
cay that  a  century  has  brought  upon  the  once 
proud  village.^^ 

The  wide  slope  of  lawn  before  the  house  was 
thick  with  blue-grass,  and  with  locust  trees  that 
whitened  with  bloom  in  the  early  summer  and 
filled  the  air  with  fragrance.  To  the  left  were 
trees  of  June  apples  and  Harvest  apples  —  of 


A  KENTUCKY  LAWYER  25 

which  the  master  of  the  house  was  so  fond  that 
in  later  years  when  he  was  in  Iowa  his  relatives 
carefully  hoarded  them  for  his  occasional  home- 
comings.^^ At  the  foot  of  the  hill  a  stone  wall 
guarded  the  roadside,  and  along  this  wall  and 
here  and  there  in  the  lawn  Chambers  planted 
cedar  trees  which  he  brought  home  as  foot-long 
shoots  in  his  saddle-bags  from  the  Blue  Lick 
hills.  After  a  hundred  years  these  cedars,  now 
well  grown,  still  keep  watch  over  the  place 
which  so  long  ago  the  owner  christened  in  their 
honor.  Cedar  Hill. 

The  house  which  Chambers  built  on  the  hill- 
top was  in  keeping  with  its  surroundings.  It 
was  a  two  story  frame  house  with  a  wide  hall 
in  the  center  and  large  rooms  on  either  side.  A 
living-room  about  twenty  feet  square  opened  on 
the  right  of  the  hall  and  a  dining-room  of  like 
size  on  the  left.  Upstairs  were  large  bed-rooms 
which  like  the  rooms  below  were  fitted  with 
large  fire-places  and  wood  mantels.  Behind  the 
house  he  built  a  cabin  for  the  servants,  and  to 
the  south  a  stone  dairy  house. 

For  more  than  a  third  of  a  century  the  life 
of  John  Chambers  was  centered  at  Cedar  Hill. 
It  was  the  birthplace  and  early  home  of  his  chil- 
dren. Here  he.  dwelt  on  the  edge  of  the  busy 
little  village  and  wrote  out  speeches,  planned 


26  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

campaigns,  and  worked  over  his  legal  cases. 
Here  in  later  years  he  entertained  the  friends 
of  his  political  life.  Clay  and  Crittenden  and 
scores  of  others  found  open  house  at  Cedar  Hill. 
On  the  broad  lawn  the  lights  often  swung  from 
the  locust  and  cedar  trees,  while  neighbors  and 
friends  made  merry  at  a  sociable  or  at  a  cele- 
bration after  a  political  victory.  And  for  days 
before  these  occasions  the  household  down  to 
the  small  children  was  kept  busily  at  work 
grinding  coffee  and  blanching  almonds. 

Two  ivory  miniatures  made  about  this  time 
show  John  Chambers  as  a  sturdy  young  man 
with  short  brown  hair  and  a  clear  eye,  and  Mrs. 
Hannah  Chambers  as  a  young  woman  of  rare 
attractiveness  and  beauty.^^  She  was  also  a 
woman  of  social  abilities  and  accomplishments. 
John  J.  Crittenden  used  to  say  that  Chambers 
ought  to  be  made  Minister  to  France  because  of 
his  wife's  diplomacy  and  her  fluency  in  speak- 
ing the  French  language.^^ 

The  years  following  his  second  marriage, 
though  not  lacking  in  legal  opportunities,  did 
not  prevent  John  Chambers  from  indulging 
other  fancies.  The  raising  of  hemp  was  a 
prominent  occupation  in  Kentucky,  and  the 
manufacture  of  hemp  rope  was  a  naturally  re- 
sulting industry.     So  Chambers  built,  on  the 


A  KENTUCKY  LAWYER  27 

land  south  of  his  house,  a  rope-walk  and  began 
to  make  rope  for  the  market.  Here  under  the 
long  sheds  the  men  all  day  long  walked  back- 
wards, twisting  the  strands  of  hemp  fibre  into 
cables  and  stern  fasts.  The  undertaking  did 
not  at  first  prove  a  financial  success,  for  Cham- 
bers soon  found  himself  deep  in  debt  and  the 
loser  of  some  twenty  thousand  dollars.  How  he 
solved  the  situation  is  best  told  in  his  own 
words : 

I  kept  my  business  to  myself  and  maintained  my 
credit  until  I  had  struggled  pretty  well  through  my 
indebtedness,  living  economically  and  wasting  noth- 
ing.'^ 


IV 

The  War  of  1812 

A  GENERATION  Only  had  elapsed  between  the 
close  of  the  Eevolution  and  the  opening  of  the 
War  of  1812,  but  in  that  time  marvelous 
changes  had  taken  place  in  the  Ohio  Valley.  In 
those  thirty  years  mountain  pass,  wilderness 
trail,  and  navigable  waterway  had  poured 
thousands  of  pioneers  into  the  West  —  hardy 
men  and  women  who  had  built  towns,  organized 
governments,  and  established  industries.  Back 
to  the  Congress  in  the  East  they  sent  men  in 
whom  burned  that  western  spirit  of  vigor  and 
independence. 

When  the  administration  was  advancing  fear- 
fully and  with  cringing  timidity  to  the  point  of 
resisting  French  and  English  insults,  the  West 
was  openly  and  vehemently  for  war.  Nor  was 
it  because  the  West  would  not  suffer  in  such  a 
war.  Well  did  the  men  beyond  the  mountains 
know  that  the  forts  of  the  Northwest  would  be 
the  objective  points;  and  fully  did  they  realize 

28 


THE  WAR  OF  1812  29 

that  men  of  Ohio  and  Kentucky  must  bear  the 
brunt  of  the  fighting. 

To  the  men  of  the  West  war  meant  more  than 
national  honor.  It  meant  a  struggle  for  their 
own  existence  —  a  fiercely  fought  conflict  for 
the  control  of  the  resources  that  they  had  with 
such  risk  and  labor  wrested  from  the  wilderness. 
The  Indian  tribes,  backed  by  British  influence 
were  daily  becoming  more  of  a  menace.  Out- 
breaks and  massacres  were  increasingly  preva- 
lent on  these  western  plains  while  Congress  dal- 
lied with  the  problems  east  of  the  mountains. 
And  so,  when  in  June,  1812,  war  was  finally 
declared,  the  West  at  once  took  its  place  in  the 
field. 

Out  of  the  quota  of  fifty-five  hundred  required 
of  the  Commonwealth,  Kentucky  was  asked  to 
send  fifteen  hundred  men  to  the  aid  of  Hull  at 
Detroit.^®  So  great,  however,  was  the  patriotic 
ardor  of  these  men  that  more  than  two  thousand 
were  on  the  march  when  they  met  with  the  news 
of  Hull's  disastrous  defeat  and  the  surrender 
of  Detroit.  The  result  of  this  calamity  in  Ken- 
tucky was  a  deep  and  painful  sense  of  the  coun- 
try's need  and  an  immediate  response  thereto. 
An  army,  under  the  command  of  William  Henry 
Harrison  and  composed  largely  of  Kentuckians, 
began  the  march  to  the  north  intent  upon  the 


30  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

immediate  recapture  of  Detroit  and  the  inva- 
sion of  Canada. 

During  the  year  1812  John  Chambers  was 
chosen  to  represent  the  County  of  Mason  in  the 
Kentucky  House  of  Representatives.^^  The  ses- 
sion convened  early  in  December.  In  the  execu- 
tive office  was  the  veteran  Isaac  Shelby  who 
had  served  in  the  Revolutionary  War  and  who 
had  been  chosen  in  1792  as  Kentucky's  first 
Governor.  A  score  of  years  had  in  no  way 
dimmed  the  intensity  of  his  spirit.  On  Decem- 
ber 8,  1812,  he  sent  to  the  legislature  a  message 
full  of  fire  and  vigor.^^  He  discussed  at  length 
the  war  situation  and  was  bitter  in  his  denun- 
ciation of  Great  Britain.  They  were  strong  men 
who  listened  to  this  message,  and  the  session 
was  not  unfruitful  of  response.  Among  those 
who  sat  with  Chambers  in  the  lower  house  were 
Robert  McAfee  of  Mercer  County,  Chilton  Al- 
len of  Clarke  County,  and  Thomas  Metcalfe  of 
Nicholas  County  —  men  of  great  ability  and 
strength  of  character.*^  John  Chambers  was 
placed  upon  the  Committee  on  Courts  of  Jus- 
tice. He  also  served  on  the  Joint  Committee  on 
Enrollments.^2 

An  interesting  incident  of  this  session  shows 
somewhat  of  the  spirit  of  the  times.  A  Circuit 
Judge  named  David  Ballengall  was   charged 


THE  WAR  OF  1812  31 

with  being  an  alien  and  unqualified  to  serve  in 
his  position  because  he  had  never  taken  the 
oath  of  allegiance  to  the  United  States.  The 
investigation  of  his  case  was  given  to  a  commit- 
tee of  which  Chambers  was  chairman.  On 
January  7,  the  committee  reported  that  Bal- 
lengall  was,  at  the  time  of  his  appointment  in 
1805,  and  still  was  in  1813,  an  alien;  that  he 
was  born  in  Scotland  and  was  therefore  a  citi- 
zen of  Great  Britain,  with  whom  the  United 
States  was  then  at  war.  The  committee  recom- 
mended the  adoption  of  a  resolution  declaring 
him  unfit  for  oflfice.^^  Following  this  report  the 
legislature  passed  a  resolution  and  an  address 
asking  for  the  removal  of  David  Ballengall. 
Whereupon  the  Scotchman  was  ousted  from  the 
office  of  Circuit  Judge.** 

Meanwhile  the  recapture  of  Detroit  by  Har- 
rison had  proved  a  longer  task  than  the  eager 
volunteers  had  anticipated.  Swamps  and  bad 
roads,  made  still  more  impassable  by  heavy 
fall  rains,  so  delayed  the  army  that  at  the  open- 
ing of  the  year  1813  Harrison  was  still  at  Up- 
per Sandusky.  The  left  wing  of  the  army, 
commanded  by  General  James  Winchester  and 
composed  almost  entirely  of  Kentuckians,  was 
somewhat  in  advance  and  on  the  tenth  of  Janu- 
ary reached  the  Rapids  of  the  Maumee  River. 


32  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Venturing  too  far  and  taking  too  scant  precau- 
tions against  surprise,  Winchester  was  attacked 
on  January  22,  1813,  at  Frenchtown  on  the 
Eaisin  Eiver.^^  His  command  was  routed  by 
the  British  and  Indians  under  General  Procter, 
and  an  indiscriminate  butchery  by  the  unre- 
strained savages  completed  the  disaster. 

The  blow  at  Frenchtown  came  upon  the  home- 
keepers  in  Kentucky  with  terrific  effect.  At 
Frankfort  where  the  State  legislature  was  as- 
sembled the  ill  news  came  with  little  delay. 
Chambers  writes  thus  of  its  reception : 

The  news  of  the  defeat  came  by  express  &  arrived 
after  night  and  was  suffered  to  spread  in  a  crowded 
theatre,  where  the  wives  and  daughters  of  nearly  two 
full  companies  and  many  office  [r]s  were  collected.  I 
never  saw  and  hope  never  to  see  again  such  another 
scene  of  wild  distress  and  agony.  Many  were  help- 
less widows  and  orphans,  who  went  there  as  they 
thought  happy  wives  &  children.^^ 

This  event  removed  any  trace  of  inaction 
that  may  have  hung  about  the  State  Capital. 
An  act  amending  the  militia  law  and  providing 
for  the  emergency  conditions  was  passed.*^ 
Governor  Shelby  was  authorized  to  raise  and 
organize  a  detachment  of  militia  and  agreed  to 
take  command  of  the  troops  in  person.  Led  on 
by  this  vigorous  stimulus,  hundreds  of  Ken- 


THE  WAR  OF  1812  33 

tuckians  volunteered  their  services  with  the  im- 
pulse of  revenge  in  their  hearts  and  the  war  cry 
of  **Eemember  the  Eiver  Eaisin'^  on  their  lips. 
The  fighting  blood  of  Kentucky  was  stirred  to 
its  depths. 

A  letter  from  Governor  Shelby  to  John  Cham- 
bers extended  an  offer  to  place  him  in  as  fa- 
vorable a  position  as  possible  in  the  body  of 
troops.*^  But  Chambers  had  already  promised 
to  join  General  Harrison  as  a  volunteer  aid-de- 
camp. The  first  few  days  of  September,  1813, 
found  him  with  the  General's  staff  at  Camp 
Seneca  on  the  Sandusky  River.^^  Here  was  a 
new  field.  ^* Ignorant  as  the  horse  I  rode'',  he 
says,  **of  everything  like  military  life,  I  had  to 
begin  with  the  a,  b,  c,  of  my  study,  but  deter- 
mined to  make  myself  useful  if  possible,  I  began 
to  look  about  me  for  something  to  do,  and  from 
the  deranged  state  of  the  Genls.  military  papers, 
I  soon  found  employment  for  myself  and  two 
educated  soldiers,  (drunken  lawyers  who  having 
ruined  themselves  by  their  intemperance  took 
shelter  from  starvation  by  enlisting)  with  their 
labour  under  my  direction  I  soon  produced  or- 
der out  of  confusion,  to  the  generals  very  great 
gratification. ' '  ^ 

The  army  did  not  remain  many  days  longer 
in  camp.    Oliver  Hazard  Perry,  on  the  10th  of 

3 


34  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

September,  won  his  brilliant  victory  from  the 
British  squadron  on  Lake  Erie;  and  the  for- 
tunes of  war  smiled  at  last  upon  the  American 
forces.  From  Camp  Seneca,  General  Harrison 
heard  the  guns  booming  on  the  Lake,  and  inspir- 
ited by  the  famous  message  of  Perry,  ^^  We  have 
met  the  enemy  and  they  are  ours'*,  lost  no  time 
in  pushing  to  the  front.^^  At  the  shore  of  the 
Lake  they  were  joined  by  Governor  Shelby  and 
his  reenforcements.  A  few  days  later  the  com- 
bined army  was  placed  on  board  the  ships  of 
the  squadron  and  a  number  of  transports,  and 
was  on  its  way  across  the  Lake,  eager  for  the 
invasion  of  foreign  soil.^^ 

Meanwhile  General  Procter,  who  had  retreat- 
ed after  his  futile  attempts  to  invade  Ohio  to 
the  vicinity  of  Detroit  and  Maiden,  looked  upon 
the  movements  of  Harrison's  army  with  terror; 
and  when  the  American  commander  boarded 
vessels  and  commenced  crossing  Lake  Erie  with 
his  army  reenforced  by  Shelby's  Kentuckians, 
he  himself  ^* remembered  the  River  Raisin'*  and, 
gathering  together  his  army,  retreated  up  the 
River  Thames,  paying  no  heed  to  the  contemp- 
tuous taunts  of  the  Indians  nor  to  the  remark 
of  Tecumseh  that  he  was  running  away  like  a 
dog  with  his  tail  between  his  legs.^^  Many  of 
the  naked  allies  now  deserted  him ;  but  Tecum- 


THE  WAR  OF  1812  35 

seh,  in  spite  of  his  contempt  for  Procter's  cow- 
ardice, remained  faithful  with  over  a  thousand 
Indians. 

On  the  twenty- seventh  of  September  the  army 
under  Harrison  landed  on  Canadian  soil.  Proc- 
ter had  begun  his  retreat  on  the  twenty-fourth. 
Harrison  was  now  delayed  waiting  for  the  ar- 
rival of  Colonel  Richard  M.  Johnson's  mounted 
regiment,  and  the  pursuit  began  with  the  enemy 
a  week  in  advance.  This  was  ample  time  for  an 
efficient  commander  to  make  good  his  escape. 
But  General  Procter  did  not  seem  to  believe  that 
he  would  be  followed  vigorously.  According  to 
his  own  report,  he  took  his  way  eastward  ^*by 
easy  marches  ".'^^  Less  than  a  week,  therefore, 
ended  the  chase. 

Not  far  from  the  old  Moravian  town  on  the 
bank  of  the  River  Thames,  on  October  5,  1813, 
Procter  was  forced  into  action.  Flanked  on 
the  left  by  the  river  and  on  the  right  by  a 
swamp,  the  British  and  Indians  occupied  a 
strong  position.  But  the  Americans  had  the 
advantage  of  numbers  and  the  day  for  the 
avenging  of  the  River  Raisin  had  come.  A 
vigorous  assault  put  the  British  to  rout,  but 
was  not  so  successful  against  the  Indians.  The 
great  leader  of  the  savages,  however,  fell  mor- 
tally wounded  and  with  the  death  of  Tecumseh 


36  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  spirit  of  his  followers  vanished.  The  Ken- 
tuckians,  keenly  mindful  of  the  Eiver  Raisin, 
pressed  hotly  to  the  attack  upon  the  Indians. 
From  the  thighs  of  a  fallen  warrior  whom  they 
took  to  be  Tecumseh,  they  are  said  to  have  cut 
long  strips  of  skin  to  carry  triumphantly  back 
to  Kentucky  for  razor  strops.^^ 

General  Procter  fled  early  in  the  battle,  but 
not  without  pursuers.  Harrison's  two  aids, 
Charles  S.  Todd  and  John  Chambers,  together 
with  Majors  Wood  and  Payne  and  a  handful  of 
others,  followed  the  fleeing  General  mile  after 
mile  until  he  was  forced  to  leave  the  road  and 
escaped  only  after  abandoning  his  carriage, 
sword,  and  papers.^^ 

The  battle  of  the  Thames  was  a  decisive 
victory  and  brought  no  little  joy  to  the  invad- 
ing army  and  to  the  country  at  large.  In  his 
report  to  the  War  Department,  General  Har- 
rison made  special  mention  of  John  Chambers 
both  as  to  his  general  performance  of  duties 
and  in  connection  with  the  spirited  pursuit  of 
the  British  General.^ "^  Nine  days  after  the  bat- 
tle General  Harrison  wrote  a  letter  to  Cham- 
bers expressing  his  sincere  thanks  for  his  serv- 
ices and  granting  him  permission  to  return  to 
Kentucky,  now  that  the  active  operations  of 
the  campaign  were  closed.^^ 


THE  WAR  OF  1812  37 

Thus  ended  the  brief  military  career  of  John 
Chambers.  It  was  scarcely  sufficient  to  mark 
him  as  a  military  man,  yet  it  was  enough  to 
prove  his  courage  in  action  and  it  afforded  an 
excuse  —  little  needed  in  the  gallant  land  of 
Kentucky  —  for  the  attachment  to  his  name  of 
the  title  Major,  which  under  stress  of  political 
exigency  was  sometimes  increased  to  Colonel 
by  the  non-military  forces  that  plan  out  and  lay 
siege  to  the  offices  of  the  State  or  National 
administration. 


A  Decade  of  Belief  Laws 

During  the  decade  which  followed  the  War  of 
1812  John  Chambers  seems  to  have  busied  him- 
self largely  with  the  practice  of  law.  The 
Order  Books  of  the  Mason  County  Circuit  Court 
give  no  record  of  attorneys  employed  in  the 
various  cases,  but  fugitive  references  indicate 
that  he  was  in  partnership  with  one  Taylor. 
This  partnership  ended  in  the  year  1816.^^ 
Later  he  had  as  a  law  partner  James  A.  Pax- 
ton,  a  distant  relative  who  died  in  1825.^^ 

In  the  year  1814  Chambers  was  urged  to  be- 
come a  candidate  for  a  seat  in  the  Kentucky 
legislature  but  declined  to  do  so ;  and  when,  in 
the  year  after,  he  was  elected  to  represent 
Mason  County  in  the  lower  house  it  was,  as  he 
expressed  it,  ^Very  contrary  to  both  my  incli- 
nation and  interest. ' '  ^^  The  part  he  took  in 
this  session  does  not  seem  to  have  been  con- 
spicuous. He  served,  as  before,  on  the  Com- 
mittee on  Courts  of  Justice.  Some  of  the  topics 
under  consideration  by  this  legislature  were  the 


A  DECADE  OF  RELIEF  LAWS  39 

boundary  dispute  between  Tennessee  and  Ken- 
tucky, retaliatory  measures  against  Indiana 
because  of  the  action  of  that  Territory  in  pro- 
hibiting the  practice  of  Kentucky  attorneys 
within  its  borders,  relief  legislation  in  behalf 
of  the  debtor  class,  and  legislation  for  the  build- 
ing and  improvement  of  turnpike  roads.  A 
large  proportion  of  private  laws  was  passed, 
several  of  which  concerned  Mason  County .^^ 

During  this  session  an  act  was  passed  renew- 
ing the  i)rovision  made  by  the  preceding  legis- 
lature allowing  debtors  to  stay  the  execution  of 
a  judgment  for  a  period  of  twelve  months  in- 
stead of  three.  The  conditions  in  Kentucky 
which  brought  about  this  legislation  and  the 
train  of  consequences  which  followed  the  pur- 
suit of  so  short-sighted  a  policy  are  of  basic  im- 
portance to  the  understanding  of  Kentucky  his- 
tory for  the  next  decade  and  in  the  interpreta- 
tion of  conditions  which  materially  affected  the 
life  of  John  Chambers. 

Following  the  session  of  1815-1816  Chambers 
did  not  again  act  in  a  legislative  capacity  until 
1828  when  he  was  elected  to  Congress."^  Dur- 
ing this  period  his  law  practice  was  evidently 
attended  with  success.  In  1819  he  was  commis- 
sioned as  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  and  served  un- 
til 1823.«*    In  1820  he  was  appointed  by  Gover- 


40  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

nor  Slaughter  to  the  office  of  Commonwealth 
Attorney  for  the  First  District  —  a  position  of 
honor  and  one  requiring  legal  ability  of  a  high 
order.^^ 

During  these  years  Kentucky  was  passing 
through  a  period  of  financial  tribulation  that 
sadly  retarded  the  development  of  the  State 
and  arrayed  men  in  a  struggle  in  which  the  bit- 
terness of  feeling  rivalled  that  which  prevailed 
during  the  War  for  the  Union  and  during  the 
recent  troubles  over  the  raising  of  tobacco 
crops.^^  The  great  mass  of  the  population  of 
Kentucky  was  exceedingly  ignorant  of  the  ele- 
mentary principles  of  public  finance.  Nobly  had 
they  defended  the  State  from  the  savage  tribes 
and  built  up  industries  and  institutions;  but 
the  theories  of  financial  legislation  and  the  prin- 
ciples which  underlie  sound  banking  seemed  be- 
yond their  comprehension. 

The  War  of  1812,  in  which  Kentucky  had 
spent  so  much  of  its  best  blood  and  resources 
in  the  defense  of  Ohio  and  the  Northwest,  left 
the  State  in  an  impoverished  condition.  A  large 
portion  of  the  population  was  in  debt  and  with- 
out the  means  of  payment.  This  widespread 
state  of  affairs  gave  rise  to  a  popular  clamor 
for  legislation  in  behalf  of  the  debtor  class.  In 
response  to  this  demand,  the  legislature  of  Ken- 


A  DECADE  OF  RELIEF  LAWS  41 

tucky  passed  an  act  in  February,  1815,  extend- 
ing the  time  allowed  for  the  stay  of  a  judgment 
from  three  to  twelve  months.  The  act  was  to 
be  in  force  for  one  year,  but  was  renewed  in 
the  session  of  1815-1816  and  by  succeeding  leg- 
islatures.^^ 

The  natural  result  of  this  legislation  was  a 
tightening  of  the  loan  market  and  a  withdrawal 
of  money  from  circulation.  Conditions  grew 
steadily  worse;  and  the  popular  party,  which 
came  to  be  generally  known  as  the  Relief  Party, 
began  to  urge  an  artificial  and  extensive  in- 
crease of  the  circulating  medium.  The  Relief 
Party  finally  procured,  in  January,  1818,  the 
passage  of  an  act  establishing  some  forty  inde- 
pendent banks  subject  to  no  State  control  or 
supervision  and  empowered  to  issue  notes  re- 
deemable either  in  specie  or  in  the  notes  of  the 
Bank  of  Kentucky  or  the  Bank  of  the  United 
States. 

The  new  banks  scattered  money  broadcast, 
but  in  most  cases  soon  went  into  bankruptcy  — 
after  having  flooded  the  State  with  a  currency 
that  soon  depreciated  and  only  intensified  the 
economic  distress.  Two  years  later,  in  Febru- 
ary, 1820,  the  legislature  repealed  the  Independ- 
ent Bank  Act;  but,  throwing  the  fruit  of  five 
years'  experience  to  the  wind,  they  enacted  at 


42  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  same  session  a  law  extending  the  time  for 
the  stay  of  an  execution  from  one  year  to 
two  years,  unless  the  creditor  agreed  to  accept 
in  payment  notes  of  the  Bank  of  Kentucky.^^ 

Still  went  up  that  unthinking  clamor  for  more 
money ;  and  in  November  of  1820  the  legislature 
—  the  infatuated  servant  of  the  Relief  Party  — 
jumped  from  the  frying  pan  of  financial  unwis- 
dom and  shortsightedness  into  the  fire  of  hope- 
less economic  idiocy  by  the  creation  of  a  Bank 
of  the  Commonwealth  with  such  provisions  that 
it  could  do  no  otherwise  than  complete  the 
wreck  of  the  State's  finances.^^ 

A  mother  bank  with  branches  was  established, 
the  entire  capital  —  fixed  at  two  million  dollars 
■ — to  be  held  by  the  State  of  Kentucky.  The 
sources  of  its  capital  stock  were  to  be  the  pub- 
lic lands  and  the  unappropriated  surplus  in  the 
Treasury  of  the  State  at  the  end  of  each  session. 
The  capital  stock  of  the  Bank  of  Kentucky  was 
also  to  be  considered  a  part  of  the  capital  stock 
of  the  Bank  of  the  Commonwealth.  Money 
from  the  first  of  these  sources  was  incapable  of 
ready  realization ;  funds  from  the  second  source 
seldom  if  ever  had  an  existence,  and  it  was  evi- 
dent that  the  capital  of  the  Bank  of  Kentucky 
was  fully  needed  by  that  institution  without 
being  stretched  to  cover  the  new  one  as  well.^^ 


A  DECADE  OF  RELIEF  LAWS  43 

Yet  upon  this  ephemeral  basis  the  Bank  of 
the  Commonwealth  was  allowed  to  issue  notes 
to  the  amount  of  three  million  dollars,  to  con- 
tract indebtedness  to  double  the  amount  of  its 
capitalization,  and  to  make  loans  subject  to 
manifold  regulations.  Its  notes  were  made  re- 
ceivable throughout  the  State  for  taxes.  The 
legislature  which  passed  this  act,  after  making 
further  provisions  with  the  purpose  of  forcing 
the  notes  of  the  new  bank  into  circulation,  ap- 
pointed new  directors  of  the  Bank  of  Kentucky 
to  insure  that  bank's  acceptance  of  the  notes  of 
the  new  bank  and  then  adjourned. 

The  Bank  of  Kentucky,  once  a  sound  institu- 
tion, was  now  nearing  a  collapse;  while  the 
notes  of  the  new  bank  soon  depreciated  to  fifty 
per  cent  of  their  face  value.  The  creditor  was 
presented  with  the  unpleasant  option  of  receiv- 
ing notes  worth  half  the  amount  of  the  loan  or 
waiting  two  years  for  an  uncertain  payment. 
Anarchy  reigned  in  the  Commonwealth,  and 
hundred  of  citizens  moved  beyond  its  borders.^^ 

It  was  not  long  until  the  monetary  question 
came  before  the  judiciary.  In  the  fall  term  of 
1823  a  case  which  involved  the  stay  of  judg- 
ments came  before  the  highest  court  of  Ken- 
tucky, the  Court  of  Appeals.^^  This  Court  was 
composed  of  three  Judges  —  John  Boyle,  Chief 


44  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Justice,  and  William  Owsley  and  Benjamin 
Mills,  Associate  Judges.  The  Belief  Party, 
fearful  of  a  decision  contrary  to  its  legislation, 
used  every  manner  of  intimidation  and  threat 
to  influence  the  men  on  the  bench,  but  without 
avail.  The  Court  unanimously  decided  that  the 
law  extending  the  term  of  stay  was  in  violation 
of  the  United  States  Constitution  since  it  im~ 
paired  the  obligation  of  contracts."^^ 

Immediate  and  intense  was  the  outbreak  of 
wrath  on  the  part  of  the  Belief  Party.  With  a 
strong  majority  in  the  State,  they  looked  upon 
the  action  of  the  Court  as  an  unwarranted 
thwarting  of  the  will  of  the  people.  Arrayed  in 
support  of  the  three  Judges  was  the  Anti- Belief 
Party,  composed  of  the  conservative  elements  of 
the  State's  population.  Of  this  latter  party 
were  the  great  mass  of  the  merchants,  business 
men,  and  the  legal  profession.  The  Belief  Par- 
ty, however,  numbered  among  its  leaders  some 
of  the  most  prominent  attorneys  of  the  State. 
George  M.  Bibb,  John  Bo  wan,  William  T.  Bar- 
ry, Solomon  P.  Sharpe,  and  others  allowed 
themselves  to  be  carried  with  the  current  of 
popular  feeling  and  fought  for  the  relief  meas- 
ures with  an  intensity  and  persistence  that 
would  have  done  grace  to  a  far  better  cause. 
Among  the  leaders  of  the  Anti-Belief  Party 


A  DECADE  OF  RELIEF  LAWS  45 

were  George  Kobertson,  Eobert  Wicliffe,  and 
Chilton  Allen. 

Now  that  the  Court  of  Appeals  had  definitely- 
passed  upon  the  matter,  the  popular  party 
turned  once  more  to  the  legislature  for  help. 
The  Judges  were  commissioned  to  serve  during 
good  behavior  and  were  removable  only  by  im- 
peachment or  by  an  address  of  the  legislature 
carried  by  a  two-thirds  vote  in  each  house.  Thus 
the  election  of  1824  became  the  scene  of  the 
next  conflict  in  the  hope  that  a  suflScient  ma- 
jority might  be  chosen  to  accomplish  the  re- 
moval of  the  Judges.  They  elected  Joseph 
Desha,  their  partisan  candidate  for  Governor, 
but  failed  to  get  a  majority  of  two-thirds  in  the 
two  houses. 

Thwarted  in  their  attempt  to  legally  remove 
the  offending  Judges,  they  turned  to  the  expe- 
dient of  legislating  them  out  of  office.  Amid 
overwhelming  excitement  a  bill  was  introduced 
and  passed  repealing  all  the  acts  establishing 
the  Court  of  Appeals,  and  organizing  in  its 
stead  a  new  Court  of  Appeals  having  the  same 
jurisdiction  and  duties.*^*  Upon  this  new  bench 
were  placed  four  of  the  prominent  leaders  of 
the  Relief  Party.  The  position  of  Chief  Jus- 
tice was  given  to  William  T.  Barry,  whom  Gov- 
ernor Desha  upon  coming  into  office  had  ap- 


46  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

pointed  as  Secretary  of  State.  Francis  P. 
Blair,  Clerk  of  the  new  Court,  secured  forcible 
possession  of  the  records  of  the  Court  of  Ap- 
peals and  the  popular  tribunal  began  its  work. 

The  Judges  of  the  old  Court,  however,  re- 
fused to  leave  office.  They  calmly  met  at  their 
next  session,  issued  an  address  to  the  people 
stating  their  position,  and  continued  to  try 
cases.  Thus  for  term  after  term  two  Courts 
met  side  by  side,  heard  appeals  and  gave  deci- 
sions, each  claiming  to  be  the  true  Court  of  last 
resort.  A  majority  of  the  attorneys  of  the 
State,  however,  carried  their  cases  to  the  Old 
Court  for  adjudication."^^ 

Meantime,  over  the  State,  indignation  meet- 
ings were  being  held  and  excitement  waxed  furi- 
ous. The  opposing  forces  now  came  to  be  known 
as  the  Old  Court  Party  and  the  New  Court 
Party.  In  Mason  County  a  meeting  was  held 
in  Washington  at  which  resolutions  were  passed 
declaring  the  act  reorganizing  the  Court  null 
and  void,  and  maintaining  that  Messrs.  Boyle, 
Owsley,  and  Mills  were  still  the  true  Court  of 
Appeals.  The  resolutions  were  supported  by 
Eobert  Taylor,  John  Chambers,  and  Adam 
Beatty,  and  opposed  by  Jacob  A.  Slack  and  W. 
Worthington."^^ 

In  1825  the  Old  Court  Party  won  a  majority 


A  DECADE  OF  RELIEF  LAWS  47 

in  the  lower  house  but  the  Senate  was  still  in 
control  of  the  New  Court  Party.  Governor 
Desha  opened  the  session  by  a  message  denounc- 
ing the  Old  Court,  the  United  States  Bank,  and 
the  United  States  Supreme  Court  and  applaud- 
ing the  revolutionary  act  reorganizing  the 
Court  of  Appeals.  The  reaction  came  at  last 
in  the  election  of  1826.  The  Old  Court  Party 
gained  control  of  both  houses,  and  on  December 
30,  1826,  repealed  the  Reorganization  Act  and 
re-established  the  old  Court  of  Appeals.^^  Thus 
was  the  course  of  the  three  steadfast  Judges 
justified,  while  the  New  Court  dropped  from 
existence.  The  act  was  vetoed  by  Governor 
Desha,  but  was  subsequently  passed  over  his 
veto.  Gradually  Kentucky  won  its  way  back  to 
safety  and  sanity. 


VI 

The  Desha  Trial 

In  the  same  issue  of  the  Maysville  Eagle  which 
contained  the  inaugural  message  of  Governor 
Joseph  Desha  to  the  newly  convened  legislature 
in  1824  there  appeared  a  six  inch  item  entitled 
**  Horrid  Murder  ^'."^^  It  told  of  the  discovery 
on  November  8  of  the  dead  body  of  Francis 
Baker  near  the  road  about  five  miles  from  the 
town  of  Mayslick.  A  week  later,  November  17, 
1824,  the  same  paper  announced  that  suspicion 
had  fallen  upon  Isaac  B.  Desha,  the  son  of  the 
Governor  of  the  State,  and  that  he  had  been 
arrested  and  conveyed  for  preliminary  examina- 
tion to  Flemingsburg,  the  county  seat  of  Flem- 
ing County. 

Now  it  so  happened  that  Fleming  County,  in 
which  the  murder  had  been  committed,  was  one 
of  the  counties  making  up  the  district  for  which 
John  Chambers  was  Commonwealth  Attorney. 
It  naturally  devolved  upon  him,  therefore,  to 
prosecute  the  case  for  the  State.  Under  the  be- 
lief, however,  that  Desha  could  not  receive  jus- 

48 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  49 

tice  in  Fleming  County,  the  legislature,  on  De- 
cember 4,  passed  a  special  act  allowing  the 
accused  to  choose  whether  he  would  be  tried  in 
the  Circuit  Court  of  Fleming  or  of  Harrison 
County.'^  Desha  chose  the  latter,  and,  since 
this  county  was  in  the  district  of  which  William 
K.  Wall  was  the  Commonwealth  Attorney,  the 
duty  of  prosecution  was  removed  from  the 
shoulders  of  Chambers  and  thrown  upon  those 
of  Wall.  This  met  with  the  approval  of  Cham- 
bers who  later  expressed  himself  as  of  the  opin- 
ion that  ** justice  sanctioned  the  measure*'.®^ 

Coming  as  it  did  in  the  most  heated  period  of 
the  monetary  conflict  described  in  the  preceding 
chapter,  the  surroundings  and  political  connec- 
tions of  this  trial  threw  it  distinctly  into  the 
limelight.  Governor  Desha,  the  father  of  the 
accused,  had  just  taken  oflSce  and  appointed  as 
Secretary  of  State,  William  T.  Barry,  perhaps 
the  most  prominent  leader  of  the  Relief  Party.®^ 
He  now  turned  to  Barry  for  aid  in  the  defense 
of  his  son.  John  Rowan,  who  had  just  been 
chosen  United  States  Senator,  also  acted  as 
counsel  for  the  defense.^^  jt  ^as  John  Rowan, 
who,  in  the  preceding  session  of  the  Kentucky 
legislature  had  so  strenuously  pressed  the  leg- 
islative independence  of  judicial  decisions  and 
the  nullification  of  the  unpopular  decrees  of  the 

4 


50  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Court  of  Appeals.^^  There  were  few  more  pow- 
erful lawyers  in  the  State  than  William  T.  Bar- 
ry and  John  Eowan.  With  them  were  associa- 
ted in  the  Desha  trial,  William  Brown  and  an 
attorney  named  Taul. 

Confronted  by  this  array  of  legal  talent  the 
prosecuting  attorney  of  the  second  district, 
upon  whom  the  change  of  venue  had  thrown 
this  important  trial,  felt  keenly  the  need  of  as- 
sistance. The  most  natural  man  to  turn  to  was 
the  Commonwealth  Attorney  of  the  district  in 
which  the  crime  was  committed  and  from  which 
the  venue  had  been  changed.  Wall,  conse- 
quently, appealed  to  Chambers  for  assistance 
in  the  case.  Chambers  declined,  but  after  re- 
peated urging  complied  and  came  to  the  aid  of 
his  fellow  prosecutor.  Martin  P.  Marshall  was 
also  engaged  by  the  friends  of  the  murdered 
man. 

A  special  term  of  court  was  appointed  for 
the  trial,  to  begin  on  January  17,  1825.  After 
two  judges  had  declined  to  hear  the  case.  Judge 
Shannon  of  Lexington  was  induced  to  attend; 
and  at  Cynthiana  in  Harrison  County  the  trial 
opened.^^  Two  days  were  consumed  in  securing 
a  jury.  About  forty-five  jurors  were  chal- 
lenged for  cause  and  excused,  and  nine  were 
challenged  peremptorily.  On  Wednesday,  Janu- 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  51 

ary  19,  the  jury  was  complete  and,  closely  fol- 
lowed by  an  excited  audience,  the  examination 
of  witnesses  began.^^ 

It  appeared  from  the  evidence  that  Francis 
Baker,  a  stranger  in  Kentucky,  stopped  on  the 
evening  of  November  1  at  the  tavern  of  Zede- 
kiah  Moore.  He  was  riding  a  gray  mare,  and 
had  with  him  about  one  hundred  dollars.  At 
sunrise  the  next  morning  he  departed  for  the 
tavern  of  Richard  Doggate,  five  miles  away. 
Here  the  wayfaring  stranger  fell  in  with  Isaac 
Desha  and  breakfasted  with  him.  Nancy  Dog- 
gate,  the  daughter  of  the  tavern-keeper,  testi- 
fied that  after  breakfast  Baker  started  from  the 
tavern  first,  but  was  soon  overtaken  by  Desha 
and  that  the  two  rode  on  together.^^ 

A  little  later  in  that  same  morning  Milton 
Ball  saw  a  gray  mare  come  trotting  up  the  lane 
at  his  father's  place.  He  caught  her  and  rode 
back  in  the  direction  from  which  she  had  come. 
Soon  he  met  Desha's  horse  with  blood  upon  its 
neck  and  withers,  and  further  on  he  came  upon 
Desha  himself,  walking  and  carrying  Baker's 
saddle-bags.  They  were  joined  a  little  later  by 
Elismon  ^^  Ball,  who,  following  his  brother,  had 
mounted  Desha's  horse.  After  some  conversa- 
tion in  which  Desha  explained  that  he  had  cut 
himself  and  that  he  had  bought  the  mare  of  a 


52  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

stranger,  they  parted.  Six  days  later  Milton 
and  Elismon  Ball  found  the  body  of  Francis 
Baker. 

For  about  a  week  witnesses  were  examined, 
the  identity  of  the  gray  mare,  the  bloody  saddle- 
bags, and  a  number  of  other  details  forming  the 
nucleus  of  the  evidence.  Throughout  the  taking 
of  testimony  the  prisoner,  a  young  man  of 
twenty-three,  sat  with  unruffled  composure; 
while  his  father,  the  Governor,  from  his  place 
beside  the  counsel,  observed  with  a  keen  eye 
each  witness  who  came  upon  the  stand,  signs 
of  the  deep  and  intense  feeling  that  stirred  him 
occasionally  showing  upon  his  countenance.^^ 

Finally  the  testimony  closed  and  the  counsel 
began  their  addresses  to  the  jury.  Martin  P. 
Marshall  opened  for  the  prosecution  and  was 
followed  by  Wall,  who  took  occasion  to  state 
that  Marshall  appeared  upon  the  request  of  the 
friends  of  the  deceased  and  that  Chambers  had 
given  a  reluctant  assent  to  repeated  solicita- 
tions by  Wall  to  aid  him  in  the  matter.  Mr. 
Taul  of  the  defense  occupied  the  remainder  of 
the  day,  and  Colonel  Brown  occupied  the  entire 
following  day. 

On  Thursday  morning,  January  27,  William 
T.  Barry  arose  and  began  his  argument.^® 
There  now  came  an  exhibition  of  the  feeling 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  53 

which  the  relief  laws  had  stirred  up  in  Ken- 
tucky. Here  was  the  son  of  the  Governor,  whom 
the  Belief  Party  had  just  placed  in  office,  on 
trial  for  murder.  In  his  behalf  were  engaged 
two  of  the  most  prominent  leaders  of  that  party, 
while  on  the  part  of  the  prosecution  was  as  de- 
cided if  not  as  prominent  an  opponent  of  the 
policies  for  which  they  so  vehemently  fought. 
A  murder  trial  in  itself  is  likely  to  provoke  in- 
teresting tilts  between  opposing  counsel.  A 
murder  trial  so  projected  into  the  midst  of  the 
most  exciting  and  intense  civil  discord  that  had 
ever  convulsed  the  State  could  scarcely  be  other- 
wise than  bitter. 

At  the  opening  of  his  address  Barry  descant- 
ed upon  the  right  to  a  fair  trial  and  upon  the 
nobility  and  good  character  of  young  Desha. 
He  then  turned  the  heavy  guns  of  his  eloquence 
upon  the  party  spirit  which  he  intimated  had 
led  to  the  **  extraneous  assistance  on  the  part 
of  the  prosecution*'.  *^He  would  rather  his 
right  arm  should  fall  from  its  socket ;  oppressed 
and  embarrassed  as  he  was  he  would  sooner 
seize  the  plow,  or  even  beg  his  bread  than  stoop 
to  volunteer  his  services  against  the  life  of  any 
human  being  upon  earth. ' '  ®^ 

^* Gracious  God,*'  he  ejaculated,  **has  party 
spirit  brought  us  to  this !    Is  the  Commonwealth 


54  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

so  feeble  as  to  require  this  interposition,  the 
raising  of  a  poney  purse  and  the  enlistment  of 
a  foreign  emissary  to  accomplish  the  ends  of 
justice  1  These  gentlemen,  moreover,  bring  with 
them  a  standing  in  society  and  a  weight  of  char- 
acter which  are  all  thrown  upon  this  unfortu- 
nate man,  but  Gentlemen  his  confidence,  his 
hope  is  in  your  inflexible  integrity. '  *  ^^  It  would 
appear  from  his  argument  that  he  considered  it 
astonishing  that  Mr.  Wall,  an  attorney  far  be- 
low him  in  reputation  if  not  in  ability,  should 
hesitate  to  undertake  alone  the  prosecution  of 
the  Governor's  son  against  the  combined  talent 
of  four  able  attorneys,  and  that  he  regarded 
any  variation  from  the  ratio  of  four  attorneys 
to  one  as  an  unfair  trial. 

He  urged  that  the  jury  act  only  upon  absolute 
proof.  ^  ^  If  there  is  a  possibility  of  innocence,  if 
there  lingers  a  solitary  doubt,  you  must  ac- 
quit.'*  ^^  After  commenting  upon  the  witnesses 
and  the  evidence,  and  making  much  of  Desha's 
former  good  reputation,  his  young  wife,  and  the 
baby  unborn  at  the  time  of  the  murder,  he  closed 
by  picturing  to  the  jury  their  own  feelings  as 
they  lay  upon  their  pillows  having  given  a  ver- 
dict of  guilty  and  afterwards  found  that  he  was 
innocent.  But  how  different  would  be  their 
feelings  if  they  pronounced  him  not   guilty! 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  55 

How  it  would  thrill  the  crowd  with  joy  —  and 
put  the  prisoner  in  a  position  to  regain  his 
reputation  and  perhaps  find  the  real  offender. 

John  Rowan  followed  Barry.^^  He  was  an 
older  man  than  his  colleague,  a  man  of  high 
ability  and  character  and  a  lawyer  whose  thirty 
years  of  practice  had  been  full  of  forensic  tri- 
umphs. He  denied  the  statement  that  he  had 
been  employed  by  the  defense.  He  had  volun- 
teered his  services  without  any  stipulation  as 
to  pay.  Like  his  colleague  he  discussed  the  pre- 
vious reputation  of  Desha  and  urged  upon  the 
jury  that  a  man  of  twenty-three  after  an  exem- 
plary life  thus  far,  had  his  character  formed  and 
it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  commit  such  a 
crime.  He,  too,  indulged  in  a  philippic  against 
Chambers.  **I  would  ask'*,  he  said,  **what  in 
morals  is  the  difference  between  murdering  a 
man  on  the  public  highway  for  money,  and  at- 
tacking a  man's  life  in  court  for  the  same  pur- 
pose? To  be  sure  there  is  this  difference.  In 
the  one  case  there  is  some  danger  of  being  ap- 
prehended, and  a  hazzard  of  losing  your  life  by 
the  hands  of  the  individual  assaulted.  But  here 
there  is  no  such  risk.  Desha  stands  mute  in 
this  curious  assembly  and  has  his  life  assailed 
from  patriotism !"  ^* 

He  emphasized  the  fact  that  Desha  could  have 


56  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

had  no  motive  for  the  murder.  He  tried  to  im- 
peach the  testimony  of  Elismon  and  Milton  Ball, 
and  suggested  explanations  for  various  details 
of  the  testimony.  He  closed  with  a  peroration 
that  brought  before  the  minds  of  the  jurors  the 
family  of  the  accused  and  the  father's  grief  and 
suffering;  and  he  rang  in  their  ears  the  heart- 
rending cry  of  David  over  his  son  Absalom. 
Some  of  the  members  of  the  jury  had  sons  who 
some  day  might  be  involved  —  why  not  do  unto 
others  as  they  would  that  others  should  do  to 
them.  His  final  plea  was,  that,  though  they 
might  convict,  they  could  never  afterwards  give 
back  a  life  that  they  had  once  taken. 

It  was  Saturday  morning  when  John  Cham- 
bers arose  in  a  crowded  court  room  to  make  the 
final  speech  in  the  trial  of  Desha.^^  He  was  not 
a  man  of  eloquence.  That  wonderful  gift  of 
speech  by  which  Barry  and  Eowan  had  been 
able  to  sway  audiences  and  carry  them  along  to 
conviction  in  behalf  of  as  indefensible  and  il- 
logical positions  as  had  characterized  the  relief 
movement  had  not  descended  upon  Chambers. 
But  by  the  weight  of  his  earnestness,  by  the 
solidity  of  his  argument,  and  the  strength  of  his 
sincerity  he  was  a  powerful  speaker.  On  this 
Saturday  morning  he  faced  a  situation  which 
called  forth  his  greatest  powers.    He  stood  be- 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  57 

fore  an  audience  that  had  heard  him  tongue- 
lashed  in  the  most  scathing  language.  He  met 
the  searching  eyes  of  the  Governor  fixed  intent- 
ly upon  his.  Then  he  turned  to  the  jury  which 
for  two  days  had  listened  to  the  persuasive  elo- 
quence of  two  of  Kentucky's  most  famous 
orators. 

He  began  speaking  calmly,  stating  with  dig- 
nity the  reasons  which  had  finally  induced  him 
to  yield  to  the  appeals  of  his  fellow  prosecutor 
and  aid  in  the  conduct  of  a  trial  from  which  he 
had  been  relieved  only  by  legislative  act. 
**  Whatever  may  be  thought  of  me  in  the  fu- 
ture'^  he  said,  ^*  though  I  should  be  consigned 
to  the  fate  of  the  Jeffries  the  reflection  that  I 
was  actuated  by  no  other  motive  ....  than  to 
see  the  ends  of  justice  accomplished,  will  always 
console  me.''®" 

Then  he  turned  with  some  spirit  upon  Barry. 
**Mr.  Barry  enquires  for  the  place  which  I  will 
fill  in  the  page  of  future  history;  Gentlemen  I 
am  too  humble  an  individual  to  hope  for  my 
name  to  be  handed  down  to  posterity ;  and  were 
I  even  so  vain  as  to  cherish  such  a  hope,  I  should 
never  envy  that  gentleman  the  rank  which  he 
will  occupy  on  that  page.  I  have  never  been 
clamorous  in  calling  upon  my  fellow  citizens  to 
promote  me,  nor  have  I  been  found  shifting 


58  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

from  one  to  another  high  office  in  our  state.''  ^"^ 
He  denied  that  party  spirit  had  actuated  him. 
*  ^  I  have  a  pride ' ',  he  said,  *  ^  as  a  man,  and  as  a 
citizen,  and  a  confidence  that  the  weight  of  coun- 
sel and  his  connexions  to  the  contrary  notwith- 
standing, the  prisoner's  case  will  be  fully  and 
fairly  investigated." 

^^I  am  asked  emphatically  by  Mr.  Eowan," 
he  continued,  ^^for  the  difference  in  morals,  be- 
tween murdering  a  man  on  the  highway  for  his 
money,  and  attacking  the  life  of  an  individual 
in  Court,  when  money  was  to  be  received;  it 
was  unkind  —  it  was  applicable  alike  to  his 
Honor  upon  the  bench,  and  you  gentlemen  in 
your  box,  to  Major  Wall,  and  to  myself ;  I  know 
no  other  way  to  repel  his  ungenerous  insinua- 
tion, than  to  ask  him  whether  even  that  would 
be  worse  than  to  throw  his  Aegean  shield 
around  every  prisoner,  to  rescue  crime  from  its 
meritorious  punishment?  The  talents  and  abil- 
ity of  that  gentleman  are  proverbial  and  par- 
ticularly in  cases  of  this  kind  are  deemed  the 
greatest  in  this  or  perhaps  the  United  States; 
and  shall  they  who  possess  such  stupendous 
talents,  always  interpose  them,  between  crimes 
of  the  most  common  hue  and  punishment,  and 
then  to  lay  on  us  the  charge  of  robbery  and 
murder?"  ^^ 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  59 

He  assured  the  jury  that  he  would  not  at- 
tempt to  enlist  their  feelings,  but  would  address 
himself  to  their  reason.  He  appeared  from  no 
ill  will  to  the  prisoner,  for  he  was  willing  to 
acknowledge  all  his  former  amiability  of  char- 
acter and  virtuous  course  of  life;  but  he  main- 
tained that  Desha  was  no  more  than  mortal  and 
it  was  possible  for  any  mortal  to  fall. 

As  he  talked  the  charge  made  by  Barry  that 
it  was  a  party  trial  seemed  to  recur  to  his  mind 
with  stirring  effect.  **I  have  been  astonished, 
amazed '^  he  said,  *Hhat  they  without  any  par- 
ticular evidence  of  the  fact  should  say  that  this 
is  a  party  trial!!  .  .  .  *  Gracious  God!*  said  Mr. 
Barry,  *has  party  spirit  brought  us  to  thisf 
Gracious  God !  has  it  come  to  this,  that  citizens 
friendly  to  justice,  and  who  use  their  efforts  to 
accomplish  its  end,  shall  for  that,  be  charged 
with  having  sanguinary  and  bloody  purposes 
against  the  accused?  He  would  not  directly 
charge  them  with  a  motive  of  this  kind,  but  I 
must  condemn  in  turn  the  reproachful  insinua- 
tion.'' 

Then  he  proceeded  to  a  review  of  the  testi- 
mony and  a  rebuttal  of  the  argument.  Here  his 
advantage  was  eminent  for  his  opponents  had 
addressed  themselves  so  largely  to  the  task  of 
enlisting  sympathy  that  they  had  failed  to  meet 


60  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  evidence  in  the  case  with  any  degree  of 
thoroughness.  Chambers  handled  the  testimony 
fairly  and  logically,  constantly  urging  upon  the 
jury  not  to  mind  any  opinion  he  might  express 
but  to  study  the  evidence.  In  conclusion  he  re- 
marked that  he  might  have  compared  the  situa- 
tion of  Baker's  relatives  and  friends,  but  that 
it  was  entirely  extraneous.  He  had  not  sought 
to  rouse  feelings.  He  desired  them  to  rely  sim- 
ply upon  the  facts  in  the  case  as  adduced  by 
the  various  witnesses. 

The  jury  retired  and,  not  coming  to  imme- 
diate agreement,  the  court  adjourned  until  Mon- 
day morning.  Shortly  after  nine  o  'clock  on  the 
thirty-first  of  January  the  jury  was  brought  in 
and  the  foreman  announced  that  they  had 
agreed  upon  the  verdict  guilty .^^  After  a  short 
adjournment  the  counsel  for  the  prisoner  moved 
a  new  trial  on  the  ground  that  the  rules  regard- 
ing the  privacy  of  the  jury  had  been  laxly  ob- 
served. Several  parties  had  been  allowed  to 
converse  with  the  members  of  the  jury.  Some 
of  the  jurors  had  left  the  room  at  times  unat- 
tended, the  Sheriff  had  slept  in  the  room  at 
night,  and  at  one  time  a  letter  had  been  thrown 
into  the  room  threatening  that  the  jurors  would 
be  hung  in  effigy  if  a  verdict  were  not  given 
against  the  prisoner.^ ^^ 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  61 

Such  loose  observance  of  jury  regulations  was 
inexcusable  and  it  is  not  strange  that  Judge 
Shannon  sustained  the  motion  for  a  new  trial. 
He  was  severely  and  very  properly  censured, 
however,  because  he  took  occasion,  in  granting 
retrial,  to  comment  somewhat  extendedly  upon 
the  evidence,  although  the  only  grounds  brought 
forward  in  support  of  a  new  trial  were  miscon- 
duct in  connection  with  the  jury. 

In  March  the  process  of  trial  turned  back 
once  more  to  its  beginnings,  but  after  more  than 
one  hundred  twenty  men  had  been  summoned 
and  only  four  jurjnnen  drawn  it  was  continued 
until  the  next  term  of  court.^^^  Again  in  June 
did  the  attempt  to  secure  a  jury  prove  ineffec- 
tual and  a  second  continuance  resulted.^ ^^  In 
the  September  term,  however,  a  jury  was  finally 
obtained  and  the  case  was  tried.  This  time 
neither  Chambers  appeared  for  the  prosecution, 
nor  Barry  or  Rowan  for  the  defense.  William 
K.  Wall  conducted  the  case  for  the  State  un- 
aided, while  Taul  and  Brown,  who  had  served 
in  the  first  trial,  assisted  now  by  Bayley  and 
Crawford,  acted  for  the  defense.^ ^^  At  eleven 
thirty  in  the  evening  of  the  last  day  of  the  term, 
Desha  was  once  more  found  guilty.  But  the 
case  that  had  already  dragged  through  four 
terms  of  court  was  not  to  end  so  soon.    Judge 


62  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Henry  0.  Brown,  on  the  ground  that  the  murder 
was  not  proved  to  have  been  committed  in 
Fleming  County,  as  was  charged  in  the  indict- 
ment, granted  a  new  trial.  With  a  confused 
mixture  of  hand  clapping  and  hissing  the  excit- 
ed audience  left  the  court-house.^^* 

So  the  wearying  process  of  searching  the 
highways  and  hedges  for  jurors  who  had  not 
formed  an  opinion  on  this  notorious  case,  and 
the  coralling  of  witnesses  for  term  after  term 
only  to  be  dismissed  upon  the  postponement  of 
the  trial,  continued.  On  June  9,  1826,  Elismon 
Ball,  one  of  the  principal  witnesses,  was 
drowned  and  the  newspapers  began  to  wrangle 
over  the  question  as  to  whether  or  not  he  had 
suicided.^ ^^  A  month  later,  Isaac  Desha,  in  an 
attempt  at  suicide  in  the  jail,  cut  his  windpipe 
nearly  in  two  and  seriously  affected  the  roots 
of  his  tongue.^ ^^  This  added  another  stay  to 
the  proceedings.  In  September,  Judge  Brown 
granted  a  petition  to  set  Desha  free  on  bail,  al- 
though the  act  allowing  a  change  of  venue  spe- 
cifically provided  that  he  should  not  be  dis- 
charged from  custody  because  of  any  number 
of  continuances.^ ^"^  So  the  year  1826  and  the 
first  half  of  1827  went  by. 

At  the  June  term  of  1827  the  usual  failure  to 
find  a  jury  occurred  and  on  the  last  day  of  the 


THE  DESHA  TRIAL  63 

term  the  Judge  made  his  now  time-honored  an- 
nouncement of  a  continuance.  A  motion  to  re- 
admit Desha  to  bail  was  overruled  and  the 
Judge  was  about  to  give  directions  for  making 
the  jail  as  comfortable  as  possible  when  Gov- 
ernor Desha  rose.  Eemarking  that  the  time  had 
now  come  for  him  to  act,  he  drew  from  his 
pocket  a  document  which  when  read  by  the 
clerk  proved  to  be  an  official  pardon  for  his 
son.^^® 

Thus  ended  the  long  and  expensive  attempt 
to  bring  the  prisoner  to  justice.  Nearly  three 
years  had  elapsed  since  the  murder,  and  thou 
sands  of  dollars  had  been  spent  with  absolutely 
no  results.  Yet  the  outcome  seemed  to  be  a 
relief  to  all  parties.  ^^The  long  agony  is  over/^ 
said  an  anti-Desha  newspaper  as  it  congratu- 
lated the  people  of  Harrison  County  upon  the 
restoration  of  the  benefits  of  a  court  of  jus- 
tice.^«» 

Grewsome  are  the  tales  in  the  newspapers  of 
the  day  of  the  discharged  prisoner  as  he  depart- 
ed from  the  haunts  of  his  youth  with  a  silver 
tube  in  his  windpipe,  breathing  through  a 
branch  that  protruded  from  his  neck.^^^  And 
there  drifted  back  from  far  away  Texas  a  rumor 
of  his  arrest  for  a  robbery  and  murder  commit- 
ted there.^"     But  for  the  people  of  Kentucky 


64  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  matter  was  at  an  end  and  they  were  well 
content  to  let  a  father's  pardon  draw  the  cur- 
tain forever  on  the  wearying  court  proceedings 
and  the  unsettled  question  of  his  innocence  or 
guilt. 


VII 
Legislativb  Affairs 

The  intense  feeling  aroused  by  the  struggle 
between  the  Old  and  New  Court  parties  by  no 
means  died  away  with  the  overthrow  of  the  New 
Court  and  the  dissolution  of  the  faction  that  had 
supported  it.  The  spirit  of  partizanship  still 
was  bitter,  and  now  that  the  State  issues  were 
in  a  measure  settled  the  intensity  found  ex- 
pression in  the  espousal  of  national  issues.  The 
Presidential  election  of  1824,  with  its  quadran- 
gular personal  contest  and  resulting  ill  feeling, 
insured  a  bitter  struggle  in  1828,  and  in  the 
year  1827  lines  were  drawing  on  John  Quincy 
Adams  and  Andrew  Jackson  with  a  distinctness 
that  left  no  doubt  as  to  the  return  of  party  divi- 
sions throughout  the  country. 

In  the  town  of  Washington,  Kentucky,  in 
1827  the  Fourth  of  July  was  celebrated  by  a 
gathering  of  men  of  both  parties  at  the  tavern 
of  Mrs.  Stith.  The  old  time  custom  of  toasting 
prominent  men  was  followed,  and  many  were 
the   eulogies   and  invectives   rained   upon  the 

5  ^^ 


66  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

heads  of  Clay  and  Jackson  and  Adams  on  this 
day  of  patriotism.  H.  C.  Edwards  had  just 
given  the  toast :  *  ^  Gen.  Andrew  Jackson :  May 
he  succeed  in  his  undertaking,  and  at  last  arrive 
at  the  head  of  the  American  government.  * '  And 
John  Chambers,  mindful  of  one  of  the  many 
acts  for  which  Jackson  bore  the  contumely  of 
his  opponents,  responded  ^^The  six  West  Ten- 
nessee militiamen  —  murdered  at  Mobile  in  the 
year  1815,  on  a  charge  of  mutiny  and  desertion. 
May  their  execution  be  the  last  triumph  of  mili- 
tary despotism  over  the  lives  of  American  citi- 
zens.'' ^^^ 

It  was  an  epitome  of  the  coming  campaign. 
Each  State  fought  with  criminations  and  re- 
criminations. In  the  State  of  Kentucky  the 
feeling  was  highly  intensified  by  local  condi- 
tions. The  men  who,  like  Chambers,  had  fol- 
lowed the  fortunes  of  the  Anti-Eelief  and  Old 
Court  Party  turned  their  support  to  the  Na- 
tional Eepublicans  and  John  Quincy  Adams; 
while  Barry  and  Blair  and  Amos  Kendall  and 
the  other  New  Court  men  waged  as  valiant  a 
combat  for  Old  Hickory. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1827  the  candi- 
dacy of  William  T.  Barry  for  the  Governorship 
of  the  State  was  announced  in  the  Democratic 
papers.     Shortly  afterwards  a  convention  of 


LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  67 

National  Eepublicans  (in  which  John  Chambers 
and  four  others  represented  Mason  County) 
met  at  Frankfort  and  nominated  as  their  can- 
didate Thomas  Metcalfe.^  ^^  He  was  a  man  of 
humble  birth,  and  from  the  fact  that  his  early 
occupation  was  that  of  a  stone  mason  he  was 
given  the  sobriquet  of  **01d  Stone  Hammer  *\ 
During  the  recent  troubles  in  Kentucky,  Met- 
calfe had  been  a  strong  Old  Court  man.  He  had 
for  ten  years  served  as  a  Representative  in 
Congress  for  that  district  which  included  Mason 
County,  and  his  new  candidacy  opened  the  field 
for  Congressional  aspirants. 

The  Maysville  Eagle  for  March  5,  1828,  con- 
tained an  address  to  Chambers  signed  **Many 
Voters'*,  asking  if  he  would  consent  to  run  for 
the  oflSce.  He  replied  in  the  next  issue  that  he 
understood  that  the  successor  of  Metcalfe  was 
to  be  nominated  by  district  convention.  He 
urged  them  to  leave  the  matter  to  the  decision 
of  that  body  and  by  all  means  to  avoid  disun- 
ion in  the  party.  In  the  same  issue,  and  imme- 
diately following  the  reply  of  Chambers,  was  a 
call  made  upon  Adam  Beatty,  which  well  exem- 
plified the  need  of  the  advice  of  Chambers  to 
unite  on  one  man.  Beatty  answered  by  a  similar 
request  that  they  leave  it  to  the  decision  of  the 
district  convention.  The  convention  met  on  May 


68  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

2  at  the  Lower  Blue  Licks  in  Nicholas  County, 
and  John  Chambers  received  the  nomination 
for  the  vacant  seat  in  Congress.  Nicholas  Cole- 
man was  selected  as  the  Jacksonian  candidate, 
and  by  early  summer  the  campaign  was  in  full 
progress."^ 

There  was  animation  in  every  phase  of  the 
struggle  in  Kentucky.  The  State  election  oc- 
curred in  August,  and  Metcalfe  was  successful 
over  Barry  by  a  very  small  majority.^^^  Cham- 
bers was  elected  as  his  successor  in  Congress 
with  a  good  margin.^^^  The  success  of  Met- 
calfe must  be  regarded  as  a  final  victory  of  the 
Old  Court  Party  rather  than  an  index  of  party 
sentiment  in  the  State,  for  in  the  November 
election  Jackson  was  given  a  majority  of  about 
eight  thousand  votes  over  Adams."  "^ 

It  was  on  December  1,  1828,  that  John  Cham- 
bers took  his  seat  in  the  House  of  Eepresenta- 
tives  at  Washington,  D.  C,  for  the  short  ses- 
sion of  the  Twentieth  Congress.  In  the  three 
ensuing  months  he  enjoyed  his  first  experience 
in  national  politics.  The  Congressional  De- 
hates  for  this  session  contain  no  speech  by  him 
and  it  is  probable  that  his  prominence  in  the 
House  was  not  great.  It  was  the  last  session 
in  the  Presidential  term  of  John  Quincy  Adams 
and  was  subject  to  all  the  peculiarities  that  pre- 


LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  69 

vail  when  the  incumbents  of  office  look  forward 
not  only  to  a  change  in  administration  but  to  a 
change  in  the  party  in  power. 

A  letter  written  toward  the  close  of  the  ses- 
sion by  Chambers  to  his  friend  John  J.  Crit- 
tenden contains  some  interesting  comments 
upon  the  politics  of  the  day.  Crittenden  had 
been  nominated  by  President  Adams  during  the 
last  two  months  of  his  term  for  the  position  of 
Justice  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,^^^ 
and  a  Democratic  Senate  resolved  not  to  act 
upon  the  nomination  until  the  session  was  over 
and  the  new  administration  was  in  power.  The 
status  of  the  nomination  is  the  occasion  of  the 
letter  from  Chambers.  After  he  expresses 
doubts  as  to  the  confirmation  of  Crittenden's 
appointment  he  remarks:  **We  are  all  doing 
worse  than  nothing  here,  and  I  am  tired  to 
death  of  it.  We  have  a  rumor  that  General 
Jackson  is  dead,  but  it  is  not  credited,  and  I 
hope  it  is  not  true;  I  would  rather  trust  him 
than  Calhoun!  Mr.  Clay  is  quite  unwell.  *The 
Old  QuilP,  however,  is  in  perfect  health,  and 
keeps  the  machinery  in  motion,  says,  *How  do, 
sir?'  to  everybody  that  calls  on  him  and  gives 
his  friends  a  very  cordial  pump-handle  shake 
of  the  hand."  i*» 

Meanwhile  Mrs.  Chambers  remained  at  home 


70  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

taking  care  of  Cedar  Hill  and  the  children. 
On  December  15th,  in  answer  to  a  letter  that 
must  have  been  written  soon  after  her  hus- 
band's arrival  in  Washington,  she  wrote ; 

I  am  afraid  my  Dear  Husband  from  your  descrip- 
tion of  the  kind  of  life  you  live  that  you  might  almost 
be  called  a  solitaire.  I  should  be  much  more  pleased 
to  hear  you  were  mixing  with  the  gay  multitude  and 
enjoying  all  the  amusements  the  city  affords,  more 
particularly  while  we  are  going  on  so  comfortably  at 
home,  attend  all  the  public  places  of  amusement  and 
tell  us  all  about  the  most  admired  Belles  and  Beaux, 
and  all  the  fashionable  follies  as  they  rise  to  your 
view.  I  have  such  unbounded  confidence  in  my  beloved 
husband  that  I  am  not  afraid  of  his  engaging  in  any 
that  can  militate  against  his  health  or  my  happiness 
in  any  sense  of  the  word.^^o 

Her  injunctions  must  have  been  diligently 
obeyed  for  on  February  3,  1830,  she  writes  in 
the  following  strain : 

Your  last  letter  was  a  very  pleasant  one  my  be- 
loved Husband.  At  the  same  time  it  set  me  to  won- 
dering what  time  you  could  possibly  have  for  attend- 
ing to  the  affairs  of  the  nation  from  your  description 
of  the  round  of  visiting  you  are  engaged  in,  you  must 
necessarily  be  up  the  greater  part  of  the  night,  and 
consequently  feel  very  unlike  Business  the  next  day. 
You  must  tell  me  how  you  manage  these  things.  I 
frequently,  when  thinking  of  you  fear  that  you  will 
become  so  fond  of  amusement  that  you  will  not  be 


I  UNIVERSITY  j 

LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  71 

happy  at  home  and  that  idea  is  very  painful,  at  the 
same  time  I  am  delighted  that  your  occupations  are 
so  diversified,  as  to  make  time  swift.^^i 

In  December  she  wrote  of  the  fear  of  an  in- 
surrection of  blacks  in  the  neighborhood  and 
mentioned  a  number  of  experiences  of  an  in- 
cendiary nature  in  which  negro  servants  were 
suspected.^22  g^^  ^]^q  winter  passed  safely ;  and 
soon  after  the  inauguration  of  Andrew  Jackson, 
Chambers  returned  to  the  family  at  Cedar  Hill, 
and  declining  reelection  to  Congress  took  up 
once  more  the  life  of  a  Kentucky  lawyer.^ ^3 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  he  found 
himself  again  called  to  the  performance  of  leg- 
islative duties.  In  the  summer  of  1830  he  was 
chosen  as  a  Representative  in  the  Kentucky 
legislature.  The  chief  reason  given  in  the  call 
which  appeared  in  The  Maysville  Eagle  for  the 
candidacy  of  Chambers  was  the  need  of  some 
able  man  to  push  forward  in  the  State  legisla- 
ture the  interests  of  the  Maysville  Pike.^24  ^ 
bill  for  the  Federal  aid  of  this  road  had  passed 
Congress  during  the  early  months  of  1830  and 
had  been  defeated  by  the  veto  of  President 
Jackson.^  - ' 

In  this  session  of  1830-1831  Chambers  occu- 
pied a  place,  as  in  both  former  sessions,  on  the 
Committee  on  Courts  of  Justice.    He  was  also 


72  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

a  member  of  the  Committees  on  Internal  Im- 
provements and  on  Ways  and  Means.^^^* 

The  macadamizing  and  improvement  of  the 
Maysville  Pike  through  Washington,  Paris,  and 
Lexington  was  an  midertaking  which  meant 
much  to  the  people  of  Kentucky.  Since  Jack- 
son with  his  antipathy  for  internal  improve- 
ments had  come  into  possession  of  the  executive 
veto,  the  only  remaining  hope  was  in  State  aid. 
Early  in  the  session  Chambers  introduced  in 
the  House  a  resolution  instructing  the  Commit- 
tee on  Internal  Improvements  to  inquire  into 
the  expediency  of  appropriating  the  funds  in- 
vested in  the  stock  of  the  Bank  of  Kentucky 
and  a  portion  of  the  stock  of  the  Bank  of  the 
Commonwealth  for  the  construction  of  works  of 
internal  improvement,  and  the  authorizing  of  a 
loan  of  money  in  anticipation  of  these  funds  to 
aid  in  the  work.  The  resolution  was  adopted  ^^"^ 
and  in  pursuance  thereof  J.  T.  Morehead, 
Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Internal  Im- 
provements, made  an  extended  report  on  Janu- 
ary 3,  1831.^2^  He  urged  the  establishment  of  a 
system  of  internal  improvements  comparable 
to  that  of  Ohio,  and  recommended  the  negotia- 
tion of  a  loan  based  on  the  stock  of  the  two 
banks  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  Maysville 
Turnpike  and  other  roads  in  the  State. 


LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  73 

About  this  time  it  was  decided  to  begin  opera- 
tions in  the  Senate  and  a  bill  was  introduced 
in  that  body  by  Kobert  Taylor  of  Mason  Coun- 
ty.^2®  It  authorized  the  Governor  to  subscribe 
for  five  hundred  shares,  in  behalf  of  the  Com- 
monwealth, in  the  stock  of  the  Maysville,  Wash- 
ington, Paris,  and  Lexington  Turnpike  Koad 
Company  and  appropriated  at  once  a  sufficient 
sum  to  pay  the  subscribed  amount.  The  bill 
received  a  favorable  vote  in  the  Senate;  on 
January  14,  1831,  ** after  a  violent  contest*'  *^^ 
it  passed  the  House;  and  on  the  day  following 
was  approved  by  the  Governor.  ^^^ 

Another  bill  which  agitated  this  session  of 
the  legislature  was  one  to  prevent  more  effec- 
tually the  importation  of  slaves.  It  evidenced 
the  desire  on  the  part  of  many  in  Kentucky  to 
accomplish  the  gradual  extinction  or  at  least 
the  prevention  of  further  increase  of  slavery  in 
the  State  —  a  movement  which  had  many  years 
before  enlisted  the  support  of  Henry  Clay  and 
others.  A  law  had  been  approved  on  February 
8,  1815,  prohibiting  under  penalty  of  a  heavy 
fine  the  importation  of  slaves  except  by  so- 
journers and  immigrants  who  took  oath  that 
they  were  bringing  them  for  use  and  not  for 
sale.' '2  The  law  had  not  been  enforced,  how- 
ever, because  no  one  cared  to  inforai  upon  the 


74  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

offenders.^  ^^  It  was  now  proposed  to  enact  a 
law  in  which  the  penalties  and  mode  of  enforce- 
ment would  be  such  as  to  render  it  of  practical 
effect.  The  bill,  however,  failed  to  receive  the 
requisite  majority.  Chambers  opposed  the 
measure  and  upon  its  final  consideration  voted 
against  it.^^^ 

The  session  closed  at  the  end  of  six  weeks. 
The  Commentator  of  Frankfort  complained 
that  although  no  session  in  many  years  had  been 
so  short,  the  business  accomplished  could  have 
been  done  in  one  week  instead  of  six.  No  bill 
to  increase  the  revenue  had  been  passed;  there 
had  been  no  election  of  United  States  Senator 
although  sixteen  ballots  had  been  taken;  and 
the  total  of  legislation  was  made  up  largely  of 
private  acts.^^^ 

John  Chambers  was  reelected  to  his  position 
in  the  House  of  1831,^^^  and  at  the  ensuing  ses- 
sion was  made  chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Internal  Improvements.  He  was  very  active  in 
favoring  the  State  aid  of  works  of  internal  im- 
provement. He  supported  a  bill  authorizing  an 
additional  subscription  of  five  hundred  shares 
for  the  Maysville,  Washington,  Paris,  and  Lex- 
ington Turnpike  Eoad  Company  but  it  failed 
of  passage.^  ^^  The  election  of  United  States 
Senator  again  came  up  and  Chambers  cast  his 


LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  75 

ballot  in  favor  of  Henry  Clay  who  was  success- 
ful against  Eichard  M.  Johnson.^  ^^ 

The  failure  in  the  preceding  session  of  the 
attempt  to  prevent  the  importation  of  slaves 
did  not  entirely  discourage  its  adherents  and 
much  time  was  spent  in  the  session  of  1831  in 
discussing  the  best  mode  of  accomplishing  the 
purpose.  It  seems  to  have  been  rather  gener- 
ally agreed  that  the  increase  of  slaves  was  an 
evil,  but  there  was  considerable  disagreement 
as  to  the  proper  method  of  checking  such  in- 
crease.*^® The  bill  now  before  the  legislature 
prohibited  the  importation  of  slaves  for  mer- 
chandise and  declared  all  slaves  brought  ille- 
gally into  the  State  free  after  June  1,  1832.  It 
also  provided  that  slaves  freed  as  a  consequence 
of  the  act  must  leave  the  Commonwealth  within 
six  months.**^  Objections  were  made  to  the  law 
because  it  provided  for  the  emancipation  of  the 
slaves  without  compensating  the  owner  and  be- 
cause it  turned  loose  upon  neighboring  States 
the  free  negroes  who  were  so  cordially  hated  in 
all  slave-holding  regions.***  The  record  of  votes 
in  the  House  Journal  shows  Chambers  to  have 
been  a  constant  opponent  of  the  measure.*  ^^ 
It  passed  the  House  by  a  vote  of  49  to  48,**^ 
but  failed  to  become  a  law.  A  year  later,  how- 
ever, a  bill  was  passed  embodying  the  policy 


76  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

of  the  law  of  1815  —  the  imposition  of  a  heavy 
fine  upon  importers  —  but  rendering  it  effec- 
tive by  making  the  prosecuting  attorneys  re- 
sponsible for  the  enforcement  of  the  law  and 
turning  over  to  them  a  fee  of  twenty  per  cent 
of  all  amounts  collected.^  ^* 

The  session  ended  on  December  23rd,  in  time 
for  the  members  to  reach  home  for  Christmas. 
Chambers  refused  to  be  a  candidate  for  re- 
election and  also  declined,  during  the  year  1832, 
an  offer  of  a  position  on  the  Court  of  Appeals 
of  Kentucky.145 

In  this  same  year,  1832,  on  the  eleventh  day 
of  November,  Mrs.  Hannah  Taylor  Chambers 
died  after  a  sickness  of  two  weeks.^*^  Less 
than  a  fortnight  had  passed  since  the  twenty- 
fifth  anniversary  of  their  wedding;  and  the 
quarter  of  a  century  of  their  married  life  had 
been  full  of  happiness.  Chambers  lived  the 
remaining  score  of  years  bravely  and  busily, 
but  the  sense  of  his  loss  made  time  drag  heav- 
ily. He  was  a  man  of  rather  stern  and  dignified 
mien,  but  with  a  heart  full  of  warmth  and  af- 
fection; and  in  his  motherless  children  he  now 
found  a  great  source  of  comfort  in  his  sorrows. 
There  were  eleven  of  them  now  —  only  three 
of  whom  had  reached  maturity  —  and  with 
them  he  spent  the  next  few  years  of  his  life 


LEGISLATIVE  AFFAIRS  77 

while  he  busied  himself  in  the  practice  of  law.^^*^ 
Particularly  was  he  fond  of  little  Lucretia,  the 
baby  of  the  family,  whom  he  affectionately 
called  Cushion  or  Cush.^^* 

During  the  two  years  following  his  wife's 
death  the  oldest  unmarried  daughter,  Matilda, 
seems  to  have  taken  her  mother's  place  in  the 
home.  In  February  of  1835,  however,  she  was 
married  to  Charles  Scott  Brent  and  removed 
to  Paris  in  Bourbon  County.^  *^  Her  father, 
writing  to  her  a  few  days  after  her  departure, 
said :  *  *  I  will  not  undertake  to  describe  to  you 
the  state  of  mind  under  which  I  suffered  the 
day  you  left  me.  I  little  thought  I  could  have 
felt  such  a  privation  so  severely,  for  I  had  con- 
cluded that  my  feelings  had  been  so  often  and 
intensely  tried  on  the  rock  of  misery  that  they 
had  become  indurated.  I  was  mistaken  however 
and  even  now  after  almost  a  week  has  elapsed 
I  would  rather  think  of  anything  else  than  of 
the  separation  from  the  beloved  child  whose 
attention  to  me  and  her  brothers  and  sisters 
has  for  upwards  of  two  years  supplyed  to  us 
as  far  [as]  possible  a  loss  of  which  I  never 
think  but  with  uncontroulable  anguish''. 

In  the  same  letter  he  said  of  Lucretia:  **the 
poor  little  thing  cried  bitterly  on  thursday  night 
about  midnight  and  when  I  inquired  what  was 


78  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  matter  she  answered  —  *  I  want  to  see  sister 
Tilley'  and  on  being  told  that  you  would  soon 
come  home  she  fell  asleep  again  immediately 
and  left  me  to  finish  the  scene  by  doing  as  she 
had  done/'^^^  Soon  after  the  departure  of 
Matilda  her  older  sister  Hannah  with  her  hus- 
band Dr.  John  W.  Henry  came  to  Cedar  Hill 
to  make  their  home  and  care  for  the  younger 
children. 


VIII 

CONGBESSMAN   FROM  KENTUCKY 

It  was  only  poor  health  that  prevented  John 
Chambers  from  rounding  out  his  professional 
career  by  a  term  on  the  bench  of  the  Court  of 
Appeals  of  Kentucky.  The  position  which  he 
had  declined  in  1832  came  to  him  once  more  in 
February  of  1835  when  Governor  Morehead 
nominated  him  for  a  position  on  the  bench  of 
Kentucky's  highest  court.  The  nomination  was 
unanimously  confirmed  by  the  Senate;  but  his 
physical  condition  at  this  time  was  such  as  to 
forbid  the  undertaking  of  so  sedentary  an  occu- 
pation, and  in  March  he  resigned  the  office  with- 
out having  taken  his  seat.^*^^ 

It  seems  that  the  restoration  of  his  health 
demanded  the  exercise  and  excitement  of  a  can- 
vass for  a  seat  in  Congress ;  and  so  in  the  month 
following  his  resignation  from  the  Court  of  Ap- 
peals he  entered  the  field  as  a  candidate  for  the 
honor  of  representing  his  district  at  the  Nation- 
al capital. ^'^^  Ij2  the  early  part  of  the  campaign 
various  candidates  for  Whig  support  offered 

79 


80  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

themselves  or  were  brought  forward  by  their 
friends.  Among  these  were  George  W.  Wil- 
liams and  John  Eootes  Thornton  of  Bourbon 
County,  and  Adam  Beatty  of  Mason  County.^^" 
One  by  one,  however,  all  these  candidates  with- 
drew until  Williams  and  Chambers  alone  were 
before  the  people.  After  some  newspaper  criti- 
cism of  his  rather  lukewarm  advocacy  of  the 
United  States  Bank,  Williams  finally  withdrew 
upon  the  appearance  of  a  Democratic  candidate 
in  the  person  of  William  Tanner,  editor  of  the 
Maysville  Monitor,^^^ 

In  August,  1835,  the  election  occurred  and 
Chambers  was  chosen,  polling  over  twice  as 
many  votes  as  the  opposing  candidate.^^^  The 
fall  months  of  1835  were  rife  with  political 
meetings.  William  Henry  Harrison  was  in  the 
field  as  the  Whig  candidate  for  the  Presidency 
and  everywhere  were  celebrations  of  the  battle 
of  Tippecanoe  and  the  battle  of  the  Thames. 
The  little  tin  god  of  war  strode  triumphant  in 
Whig  politics  and  the  man  with  battle-scars  or 
a  faded  uniform  found  them  of  political  advan- 
tage. The  part  played  by  Chambers  in  the  bat- 
tle of  the  Thames  made  him  an  interesting 
speaker  at  campaign  meetings  and  the  candi- 
dacy of  his  former  chief  received  his  warm  and 
active  support. ^^^ 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   81 

In  the  National  House  of  Eepresentatives  the 
career  of  John  Chambers  is  not  a  striking  one. 
He  served  during  four  regular  and  one  extra 
sessions,  in  each  of  which  the  Whigs  were  in  a 
minority.  He  took  his  part  in  the  routine  of  the 
opposition,  persistently  combated  the  financial 
measures  of  Jackson  and  his  coadjutors,  upheld 
with  vigor  and  ability  the  interests  of  the  State 
he  represented,  and  occasionally  assisted  in  the 
wearying  tactics  of  the  minority  filibuster. 

The  year  1835  had  witnessed  a  complete  sus- 
pension of  diplomatic  relations  between  the 
United  States  and  France,  arising  from  the  fail- 
ure of  the  French  government  to  pay  the  annual 
installments  due  to  this  country  by  agreement  in 
the  treaty  of  1831.  An  outspoken  message  by 
President  Jackson  to  Congress  on  the  subject 
of  the  negligence  of  the  French  Chambers  pro- 
voked intense  feeling  in  France  which  found  an 
echo  on  this  side  of  the  water. "^  In  the  first 
session  of  the  Twenty-fourth  Congress  a  reso- 
lution was  introduced  into  the  House  instruct- 
ing the  Naval  Committee  to  inquire  into  the 
expediency  of  increasing  the  navy.^'^*  This 
brought  on  a  debate  of  some  animation  in  which 
the  prospects  of  war  were  commented  on  and 
the  resolution  was  charged  with  being  the  com- 
mencement of  a  series  of  war  measures. 

6 


82  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

John  Chambers  was  one  of  a  minority  of 
eighteen  who  voted  against  the  resolution.  He 
was  criticised  for  his  vote  by  some  of  the  news- 
papers of  his  constituency ;  but  defended  his  ac- 
tion upon  the  ground  that  the  President  had 
made  no  further  communication  as  to  the  status 
of  affairs  with  France  and  there  was  no  cer- 
tainty that  the  present  relations  warranted  such 
a  resolution.  War  measures  should  be  taken, 
not  upon  the  initiative  of  the  Naval  Committee, 
but  upon  information  from  the  Executive  who 
was  responsible  for  the  foreign  negotiations  and 
from  the  Secretary  of  the  Navy  as  to  the  needs 
of  that  Department.  He  had  no  doubt,  he  said, 
of  the  necessity  of  increasing  the  naval  re- 
sources of  the  country,  but  he  wished  to  act 
under  standingly.  ^^^ 

Less  than  a  week  after  the  resolution  passed 
the  House  the  President  sent  to  Congress  a  spe- 
cial message,  laying  before  them  the  recent  com- 
munications between  the  two  countries  and  urg- 
ing an  increase  of  the  navy.^®^  At  this  point, 
however.  Great  Britain  offered  to  mediate  and 
matters  were  amicably  settled. 

In  his  opposition  to  what  was  termed  the  New 
York  Relief  Bill  favorable  comment  was  re- 
ceived by  John  Chambers  from  the  home 
papers.    In  consequence  of  the  sufferings  due 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   83 

to  the  recent  disastrous  fire  in  New  York 
City  a  bill  was  brought  in  for  the  relief  of 
that  stricken  population.  It  was  opposed  by 
Chambers  on  the  ground  that  it  did  not  dis- 
tinguish properly  between  the  real  sufferers 
and  those  who  were  attempting  to.  profit  by 
the  woes  of  others.^ ^*  An  insinuation  of  C. 
C.  Cambrel eng,  the  Representative  from  New 
York  City,  to  the  effect  that  the  West  owed  sup- 
])ort  to  the  measure  because  of  services  previ- 
ously rendered  to  that  section  met  with  an  in- 
dignant protest  from  Chambers.  No  State,  he 
said,  had  any  claim  on  the  gratitude  of  Ken- 
tucky. She  did  not  envy  to  her  sister  States  any 
aid  from  the  Federal  government ;  she  only  de- 
manded a  just  and  equal  share  of  the  surplus 
revenues  which  she  had  not  received.  **  Hereto- 
fore'*, he  continued,  **  Kentucky  had  nothing 
national  but  the  blood  of  her  gallant  sons. 
When  that  was  required  for  the  great  purpose 
of  patriotic  defense,  it  was  poured  out  freely, 
aye,  lavishly  upon  the  field  of  battle.  Her  roads 
and  rivers  were  never  national  and  for  all  prac- 
tical purposes,  as  far  as  the  favors  of  govern- 
ment were  concerned,  she  might  as  well  be  ex- 
cluded from  the  confederacy. ' '  ^^^ 

The  account  of  two  of  his  speeches  upon  this 
subject  appears  in  The  Maysville  Eagle,  telling 


84  JOHN   CHAMBERS 

of  the  warm  commendation  they  evoked  from 
Eepresentatives  Wise,  Peyton,  and  others  of  the 
opposition.^^^  Chambers  himself  in  a  letter  to 
his  niece,  Lucretia  Stull,  laughed  at  her  com- 
pliments and  remarked:  ^^The  puffings  about 
my  speech  which  you  have  read  in  the  Eagle, 
were  the  idle  compliments  of  some  letter  writers 
here  under  the  influence  of  some  very  partial 
friends  on  the  floor  of  Congress  among  whom 
are  the  Virginia  &  Tennessee  *game  chickens'. 
Wise  and  Peyton  who  have  taken  it  into  their 
heads  to  be  extravagantly  fond  of  Hhe  old  Ken- 
tuckian'  '\'^* 

^'I  do  want  to  get  home  very  very  much'',  he 
wrote  to  Cedar  Hill ;  and  the  thought  of  the  good 
things  of  his  own  farm  brought  out  the  injunc- 
tion, ^*  leave  some  good  Bacon  for  me  when  I 
get  home  for  I  am  heartily  tired  of  fish  &  oyster 
and  ducks  &  pudding  &  pastry  but  above  all  I 
long  for  a  little  milk".^^^  He  was  always  a 
home-loving  individual,  and  the  mental  picture 
of  Cedar  Hill  and  the  children  awaiting  the  re- 
turn of  their  only  parent  must  have  been  very 
strong  and  constant  with  him.  Nevertheless, 
when  the  Congressional  elections  recurred 
Chambers  appeared  in  the  field  and  was  re- 
elected by  a  large  majority.^^^ 

Shortly  after  the  August  election  of  1837  he 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   85 

returned  to  Washington,  D.  C,  for  the  extra 
session  called  by  President  Van  Buren  to  take 
measures  for  the  betterment  of  the  financial 
condition.  The  session  convened  in  September 
and  lasted  somewhat  more  than  a  month. 
Chambers  was  a  part  of  a  vigorous  Whig  minor- 
ity which  fought  in  vain  against  the  acts  with- 
holding the  fourth  installment  of  the  public 
deposits  and  providing  for  an  issue  of  Treasury 
notes,  but  which  succeeded  in  tabling  in  the 
House  and  defeating  the  Sub-Treasury  Bill.^^^ 
The  bank  question  in  particular  aroused 
Chambers's  interest.  In  a  speech  before  his 
constituents  he  handled  with  uncompromising 
severity  the  policy  of  the  administration  in  se- 
lecting certain  banks  for  the  location  of  depos- 
its, stimulating  them  to  large  accommodations 
and  excessive  issues  and  subsequently  attempt- 
ing to  crush  them  by  forcing  the  payment  of 
deposits  in  gold  or  silver.^^^  On  the  floor  of  the 
House  he  remarked,  apropos  of  the  recall  of 
money  from  the  deposit  banks,  that  the  govern- 
ment stood  in  the  same  relation  to  the  banks  as 
the  Devil  did  to  the  human  race :  he  first  tempt- 
ed them  to  disobedience,  and  then  ruined  them. 
So  the  government  had  encouraged  the  banks 
to  increase  their  circulation,  and  was  now  seek- 
ing their  ruin.^^^ 


86  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Soon  after  the  adjournment  of  the  extra  ses- 
sion a  dinner  was  given  at  Wheeling,  Virginia, 
to  Senators  Clay  and  Crittenden,  at  which  a 
considerable  number  of  Eepresentatives  from 
Kentucky,  Tennessee,  and  Ohio  were  present  as 
invited  guests.  Clay  and  Crittenden  responded 
to  addresses,  and  Chambers,  on  behalf  of  the 
delegations  from  the  three  States,  made  what 
was  termed  ^^a  forcible  and  eloquent  speech ".^^'^ 

Back  of  the  shifting  issues  over  which  men 
contended  in  the  decades  that  preceded  the  War 
for  the  Union  lay  always  the  dread  subject  of 
slavery.  For  the  most  part  men  avoided  it  as 
a  dangerous  topic  of  discussion,  but  with  each 
passing  year  it  obtruded  itself  more  and  more 
frequently  into  the  columns  of  the  press,  the 
public  platform,  and  the  halls  of  Congress.  In 
the  thirties  the  question  of  annexing  Texas,  of 
prohibiting  slavery  in  Arkansas  and  the  District 
of  Columbia,  and  of  the  reception  of  anti- 
slavery  petitions  in  Congress  gave  ample  oc- 
casion for  the  most  stirring  agitation  of  the 
mooted  problem. 

Chambers  was  himself  a  slave  owner;  he 
represented  a  slave-holding  State,  and  it  is  only 
natural  that  his  alignment  should  be  with  the 
South.  Yet  it  was  with  the  conservative  rather 
than  the  ultra  Southern  faction  that  he  cast  his 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   87 

lot.  Some  years  before  he  had  remarked  to 
Crittenden  that  he  would  rather  trust  Jackson 
than  Calhoun.^  ^^  He  had  no  sympathy  with  nul- 
lification and  believed  with  Clay  in  the  policy  of 
conciliation  for  the  sake  of  preserving  the 
Union. 

In  respect  to  the  annexation  of  Texas  his 
attitude  was  explicitly  stated  in  a  speech  to  his 
constituents  late  in  the  fall  of  1837.  He  alluded 
to  the  subject  as  one  **rife  with  materials  the 
most  exciting  and  inflam[m]atory.''  He  be- 
lieved that  Texas  would  never  be  annexed  with- 
out a  severance  of  the  Union.  **Tlie  wild  and 
mania-stricken  abolitionists  of  the  North'*,  he 
said,  **were  playing  into  the  hands  of  ambitious 
and  designing  disorganizers  of  the  South'*.  In 
his  pessimism  he  was  constrained  to  believe 
**That  the  admission  of  Texas  was  to  be  urged 
by  certain  politicians  of  the  South  with  reckless 
and  persevering  obstinacy,  and  would  be  made 
a  pretext  by  which  to  dissolve  the  Union  and 
rear  up  a  great  Southern  confederacy."  He 
called  upon  the  patriotic  and  conservative  spir- 
its of  Kentucky  to  avert  such  a  calamity,  **to 
interpose  and  present  a  nucleus  around  which 
the  sound  and  uncontaminated  portions  of  the 
Union  might  rally.  Kentucky  had  twice  stilled 
the  gathering  tempest  of  civil  strife.    It  was  a 


88  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

son  of  Kentucky  who  stepped  forth  as  the  great 
Mediator  of  the  Missouri  question.  And  it  was 
the  same  son  of  Kentucky,  who  in  the  evil  hour 
of  Nullification  and  Southern  revolt,  had  quelled 
the  embryo  elements  of  intestine  war. ' '  ^  '^^ 

Chambers  could  not  know  that  the  same  man 
who  had  fathered  these  two  compromises  would 
more  than  a  dozen  years  later  bring  forth  a  final 
desperate  attempt  to  pacify  the  sectional  strife 
and  still  less  could  he  realize  of  how  little  per- 
manent effect  Clay's  last  act  would  be  in  avert- 
ing the  clash  of  arms. 

The  question  of  the  reception  and  disposition 
of  slavery  petitions  was  one  that  harassed  Con- 
gress for  many  years.  Petitions  for  the  aboli- 
tion of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia  be- 
came so  frequent  in  the  first  session  of  the 
Twenty-fourth  Congress  that  the  House  finally 
passed  the  Pinckney  Eesolutions  in  May,  1836, 
providing  that  all  petitions,  memorials,  etc.,  re- 
lating to  slavery  should  without  being  printed 
or  referred,  be  laid  on  the  table,  and  no  further 
action  be  taken  on  them.^*^^  Against  this  and 
subsequent  gag  resolutions,  which  with  justice 
he  claimed  were  in  violation  of  the  constitu- 
tional guarantee  of  the  right  of  petition,  John 
Quincy  Adams  waged  constant  and  inveterate 
war  with  a  vigor  that  made  the  last  days  of  the 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   89 

*^01d  Man  Eloquent^'  the  most  brilliant  of  his 
remarkable  life.^^* 

In  each  of  the  four  regular  sessions  during 
which  Chambers  was  a  member  of  Congress 
resolutions  of  this  nature  passed  the  House, 
and  in  each  case,  though  present  when  the  reso- 
lutions came  up  for  final  consideration,  he  re- 
fused to  vote.*^^  Chambers  was  not  a  man  of 
vague  principles,  nor  was  he  one  who  hesitated 
to  express  them.  His  entire  Congressional 
record  shows  clearly  that  he  was  opposed  to  the 
slavery  petitions  and  opposed  to  the  meddling 
by  Congress  with  the  institution  of  slavery  in 
the  District  of  Columbia.  It  is  probable,  if  one 
may  judge  from  his  vote  on  preliminary  and 
similar  questions  and  from  a  few  incidental  re- 
marks that  find  their  way  into  the  Journal  and 
Globe,  that  he  belonged  to  a  small  class  who 
believed  with  Wise  of  Virginia  that  the  peti- 
tions should  not  even  be  received  and  who  re- 
fused to  vote  for  resolutions  which  by  providing 
for  their  disposition  implied  the  right  to  re- 
ceive them.*^° 

It  is  interesting  to  note  in  this  connection 
that  between  the  second  and  third  sessions  of 
the  Twenty-fifth  Congress  Chambers  was  en- 
gaged in  a  professional  capacity  to  defend  an 
abolitionist  charged  with  aiding  in  the  escape 


90  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

from  Kentucky  of  a  number  of  slaves.  In  the 
fall  of  1838,  Mason  County  was  deeply  stirred 
over  the  trial  of  John  B.  Mahan,  indicted  for 
the  abduction  of  slaves  belonging  to  William 
Greathouse.  Mahan  was  a  tall,  raw  boned  farm- 
er and  Methodist  minister  of  Ohio  —  a  stalwart 
abolitionist  and  a  diligent  agent  for  the  under- 
ground railroad.^  "^^  In  the  year  1838,  fifteen 
slaves,  including  two  belonging  to  William 
Greathouse  of  Kentucky,  passed  through  his 
hands  on  their  way  north  to  freedom.  Soon 
afterwards  he  was  apprehended  in  Ohio,  taken 
to  Kentucky  upon  a  requisition  of  the  Governor 
of  that  State  on  Governor  Vance  of  Ohio,  and 
lodged  in  the  Mason  County  jail.^"^^ 

For  several  months  he  lay  in  prison  while 
excitement  rose  to  a  high  pitch  on  both  sides  of 
the  river.  In  Ohio  the  granting  of  the  requisi- 
tion by  Vance  was  made  an  issue  in  the  fall  cam- 
paign by  the  abolitionists,  with  the  result  that 
Governor  Vance  was  defeated  for  reelection.^  ^^ 
On  the  south  side  of  the  river  the  fear  of  losing 
slaves  by  kidnapping  aroused  consternation  and 
the  desire  to  administer  swift  judgment  upon 
Mahan. 

The  case  came  to  trial  on  Tuesday,  November 
13,  and  lasted  six  days.  The  prosecution  was 
conducted  by  four  prominent  attorneys  of  the 


CONGRESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   91 

county.  The  defense  of  Mahan  was  undertaken 
by  a  Cincinnati  attorney  named  Vaughan  and 
by  John  Chambers  and  his  son,  Francis  Taylor 
Chambers.^®^  During  the  taking  of  testimony  a 
witness  swore  that  Mahan  had  told  him  that, 
for  the  purpose  of  forwarding  runaway  slaves, 
there  was  a  chain  reaching  from  Kentucky  to 
Canada,  and  that  the  slaves  of  Greathouse  had 
been  among  those  recently  assisted  by  him.^^^ 
The  defense  moved  that  the  Judge  exclude  the 
testimony  from  the  consideration  of  the  jury  as 
wholly  insufficient  and  incompetent  to  prove  the 
offense  charged  in  the  indictment,  or  that  the 
Judge  instruct  the  jury  that,  in  the  absence  of 
proof  that  the  offense  was  committed  by  the 
prisoner  in  Mason  County,  he  was  not  legally 
subject  to  conviction.  It  seemed  clearly  evident 
that  Mahan  had  not  for  many  years  been  in 
Kentucky ;  and,  in  his  charge  to  the  jury,  Judge 
Walker  Reid  instructed  them  to  find  for  the 
prisoner  if  it  appeared  from  the  evidence  that 
the  crime  was  not  committed  in  Mason  County. 
After  a  few  minutes  retirement  the  jury  brought 
in  a  verdict  of  not  guilty. ^^^ 

It  should  not  of  course  be  gathered  from  the 
espousal  by  Chambers  of  the  cause  of  Mahan 
that  he  had  any  sympathy  for  abolitionism.  He 
did  not.    He  was  both  a  believer  and  a  partici- 


92  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

pant  in  the  institution  of  slavery.  In  the  fall 
of  1840  at  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Mason 
County,  resolutions  offered  by  Chambers  were 
passed,  urging  the  importance  of  forming  an 
association  of  the  slave  owners  in  Mason  and 
the  adjoining  counties  for  the  better  security  of 
their  slave  property. ^^^ 

The  work  of  John  Chambers  in  Congress  was 
probably  of  more  consequence  in  the  perform- 
ance of  committee  duty  than  in  the  exercise  of 
the  powers  of  debate  upon  the  floor.  In  each  of 
the  five  sessions  which  he  spent  in  Congress,  he 
was  a  member  of  the  Committee  of  Claims,  and 
at  the  opening  of  the  session  of  1838-1839  he 
succeeded  the  veteran  Elisha  Whittlesey  of 
Ohio  as  chairman. ^^*  Indefatigable  persistence 
was  a  marked  characteristic  of  Chambers,  and 
he  performed  with  untiring  devotion  the  rou- 
tine duties  of  this  office. 

The  Baltimore  Patriot  said  of  him:  ^^It  is 
but  just  to  Mr.  Chambers  ....  to  say,  that  at 
no  previous  short  session  has  there  been  a 
greater  amount  of  business  done  in  this  com- 
mittee nor  a  greater  number  of  bills  for  the 
benefit  of  claimants  on  the  justice  of  the  gov- 
ernment acted  upon  than  at  the  present.''  ^^^ 

In  another  paper  we  find  from  the  pen  of  a 
correspondent    the    following    tribute:     ^^The 


CONGKESSMAN  FROM  KENTUCKY   93 

writer  of  this  has  often  noted  him  at  the  mid- 
night hour,  when  others  were  asleep  or  seeking 
amusement,  patiently  toiling  over  a  mass  of 
papers,  carefully  separating  the  fair  from  the 
fraudulent  claim  —  anxiously  endeavoring  to 
protect  the  Treasury  from  illegal  and  exorbi- 
tant demands,  and  at  the  same  time  to  do 
prompt  and  full  justice  to  poor  and  meritorious 
petitioners.'*'®'^ 


IX 

The  Log  Cabin  Campaign 

When  the  fourth  day  of  March,  1839,  brought 
to  a  termination  the  final  session  of  the  Twenty- 
fifth  Congress,  John  Chambers  looked  back 
over  the  busy  decade  given  up  so  largely  to 
legislative  affairs  and  with  a  feeling  of  relief 
contemplated  retirement  from  active  politics. 
In  January  he  had  declined  reelection,  and  now 
he  proposed  to  remain  with  his  family  in  Ken- 
tucky and  resume  the  practice  of  law.^^^ 

For  an  avocation  it  appears  that  he  turned 
to  the  peaceful  pastime  of  silk  culture.  A  wide- 
spread interest  seems  to  have  been  prevalent  in 
Kentucky  at  this  time  in  the  development  of  the 
silk  industry.  In  July  a  meeting  at  Washing- 
ton appointed  Chambers  and  Henry  Eeeder  as 
delegates  to  the  State  Silk  Convention  at  Lex- 
ington ;  and  in  September  a  Mason  County  Silk 
Society  was  organized  with  John  Chambers  as 
president.^^^  But  the  industry  did  not  take  very 
deep  root  in  the  Commonwealth.  Perhaps  the 
State  which  had  been  founded  by  men  in  linsey- 

94 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  95 

woolsey  and  buckskin  still  cared  little  for  an 
occupation  that  savored  so  much  of  aristocracy 
as  did  the  manufacture  of  silk.  It  may  be  that 
those  who,  like  Chambers,  threw  themselves 
with  such  vigor  into  the  log  cabin  and  hard  cider 
campaign  of  1840,  found  the  culture  of  silk  in- 
consistent with  their  outcry  against  the  finery 
of  Martin  Van  Buren.  At  all  events  the  indus- 
try did  not  become  a  formidable  rival  of  to- 
bacco and  hemp. 

While  Chambers  was  attending  silk  conven- 
tions his  companions  who  were  still  in  the  field 
of  politics  were  looking  about  for  a  candidate 
for  Governor;  and  among  the  names  mentioned 
in  the  forecasts  of  the  Harrodsburg  Conven- 
tion was  that  of  John  Chambers.  A  writer  in 
The  Maysville  Eagle,  commenting  on  the  quali- 
fications of  Chambers,  emphasized  his  active 
support  of  the  constitution  and  laws  during  the 
stirring  times  of  the  relief  legislation  and  the 
struggle  over  the  Court  of  Appeals.^^®  A  con- 
tributor to  another  paper  laid  stress  on  the 
varied  experience  of  the  Old  Kentuckian  and 
his  faithful  and  efficient  work  as  chairman  of 
the  Committee  of  Claims,  adding  that  he  **had 
proof,  in  his  attention  to  the  sick,  and  generous 
sympathy  for  the  afflicted;  that  Major  Cham- 
bers possesses  in  an  unusual  degree,  those  kind, 


96  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

warm  and  benevolent  affections  which  ennoble 
human  nature,  and  without  which  no  one  is  to 
be  trusted. ' '  ^^^  No  evidence  is  forthcoming, 
however,  to  the  effect  that  Chambers  had  lost 
his  desire  for  retirement  from  the  political 
arena,  and  at  the  Harrodsburg  Convention  on 
August  26,  1839,  his  name  was  not  brought  for- 
ward.^ ^^  Eobert  P.  Letcher  was  nominated  and 
elected;  while  Garrett  Davis  was  chosen  to  fill 

the  seat  made  vacant  by  the  withdrawal  of 
Chambers.^92 

Nevertheless  the  way  out  of  politics  is  often 
more  difficult  to  find  than  the  way  in,  and  so  it 
was  many  years  before  there  came  to  John 
Chambers  actual  surcease  from  political  labors. 
At  this  particular  time  the  tie  that  held  him  to 
the  paths  of  politics  was  that  well  knit  bond  of 
affection  for  his  veteran  chieftain  of  the  battle 
of  the  Thames.  As  the  unfortunate  adminis- 
tration of  Martin  Van  Buren  drew  to  a  close 
it  became  increasingly  evident  that  only  through 
a  combination  of  the  various  factions  of  the  Op- 
position could  the  defeat  of  the  Administration 
be  accomplished  in  the  national  election  of  1840. 
Among  those  who  were  opposed  to  the  re- 
election of  the  Wizard  of  Kinderhook  were  the 
Whigs,  with  their  diverse  personal  predilec- 
tions for  Harrison,  Clay,  or  Webster ;  the  Anti- 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  97 

Masons,  the  Abolitionists,  and  the  Democrats 
who  had  followed  the  lead  of  Old  Hickory  but 
found  only  disappointment  in  his  chosen  suc- 
cessor. The  question  now  was :  who  could  win 
the  united  support  of  these  heterogeneous  ele- 
ments! 

The  process  of  elimination  first  of  all  dropped 
Webster  which  left  the  choice  to  the  two  men  of 
the  West  —  Henry  Clay  and  William  Henry 
Harrison.  But  Clay  being  a  Mason  could  not 
command  the  Anti-Masonic  vote;  and,  in  a  re- 
cent speech  he  had  alienated  himself  from  the 
support  of  the  Abolitionists.^®^  Moreover, 
General  Harrison  had  received  and  accepted 
the  nomination  of  the  Anti-Masonic  party;  ^®* 
and  in  December,  1839,  the  National  Conven- 
tion of  the  Whig  party  at  Harrisburg  wisely 
made  the  veteran  soldier  of  Ohio  their  standard 
bearer.*  ®°  The  Democrats  rallied  to  the  support 
of  Martin  Van  Buren  and  there  followed  the 
most  exciting  presidential  campaign  that  the 
country  had  yet  witnessed. 

A  careless  remark  to  the  effect  that  General 
Harrison  would  concern  himself  no  longer  with 
presidential  aspirations  if  he  were  possessed 
of  a  log  cabin  and  plenty  of  hard  cider,  gave  to 
the  Whigs  a  rallying  cry  which  swept  from  end 
to   end   of   the   country.*®^     Effective   popular 


98  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

comparisons  were  drawn  between  the  simple 
and  honest  democracy  of  the  log  cabin  and  hard 
cider  candidate  and  the  gold  and  silver  and 
liveried  servants  of  the  aristocratic  Van  Bu- 
ren.  This  hypnotic  suggestion,  together  with 
that  ever  potent  worship  of  a  military  hero, 
served  to  bind  together  in  Harrison's  support 
a  coalition  that  had  neither  well-defined  party 
principles  nor  vestige  of  party  platform. 

Especially  in  the  West  did  the  popular  fer- 
vor run  high.  From  the  Alleghanies  to  the 
Mississippi  reigned  a  continuous  Harrison  car- 
nival wherein  the  people  amidst  campaign 
songs,  bonfires,  torchlight  processions,  and  im- 
mense barbecues  worked  themselves  into  a 
frenzy  of  enthusiasm  which  the  sneers  of  the 
Democrats  served  but  to  inflame. 

John  Chambers,  though  a  stanch  political 
and  personal  friend  of  Henry  Clay,^^*^  was  heart 
and  soul  in  sympathy  with  the  candidacy  of  Old 
Tippecanoe.  The  circulation  of  reports  deroga- 
tory to  the  character  and  military  abilities  of 
General  Harrison  brought  Charles  S.  Todd  and 
John  Chambers  and  others  who  had  fought  with 
him  in  the  War  of  1812  into  the  field  in  an  imme- 
diate and  vigorous  crusade  in  his  defense.^ ^^ 

Turning  from  his  coveted  retirement  Cham- 
bers plunged  without  hesitation  into  a  lengthy 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  99 

and  exciting  political  campaign.  He  was  well 
fitted  for  effective  campaigning.  From  his 
forty  years  of  experience  he  was  widely  and 
favorably  known.  He  was  a  convincing  speaker, 
and  his  personal  friendship  for  and  military 
connection  with  General  Harrison  gave  an 
added  eloquence  to  his  words.  Many  were  the 
speeches  he  delivered  during  the  winter  fol- 
lowing Harrison's  nomination.  In  March  he 
presided  over  a  meeting  at  the  court-house  in 
Washington,  which  organized  a  Mason  Central 
Tippecanoe  Club.^®*^  A  week  later  a  constitu- 
tion was  adopted  and  provisions  made  for 
weekly  meetings  until  the  thirteenth  of  the  next 
month  and  for  monthly  meetings  thereafter.^*^*^ 
The  thirteenth  of  April  was  the  date  set  for  a 
grand  Whig  celebration  at  Washington.  To- 
ward the  last  of  March  delegates  from  the  vari- 
ous Tippecanoe  clubs  of  Mason  County  met  at 
Washington  with  John  Chambers  in  the  chair. 
Detailed  arrangements  were  made  for  bands, 
processions,  speakers  and  all  the  paraphernalia 
requisite  for  a  successful  Whig  meeting.^^^ 

The  appointed  day  fell  on  a  Monday.  Day- 
break found  people  already  on  their  way.  The 
whole  Whig  portion  of  the  county  turned  out, 
and  strangers  came  by  boat  to  Maysville  from 
Louisville,  Cincinnati,  Covington,  Portsmouth, 


100  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

and  all  the  other  towns  along  the  Ohio  Eiver. 
At  Maysville  they  formed  a  procession,  and 
led  on  by  the  inspiring  strains  of  the  Cincin- 
nati Band  playing  the  popular  campaign  tunes 
the  Maysville  Tippecanoe  Club  with  its  host  of 
followers  marched  out  of  town  and  up  the  old 
road  toward  Washington.  Arriving  at  the  lit- 
tle town  on  the  Pike  they  met  other  processions 
from  the  inland  regions,  and  all  joined  in  one 
great  parade  in  front  of  the  public  square.  At 
ten  o  'clock  they  marched  to  the  sound  of  music 
to  the  ground  prepared  for  the  exercises.  The 
speakers'  stand  was  on  a  low  piece  of  pasture 
ground  surrounded  by  rising  slopes  where  the 
audience  assembled.  In  front  of  the  stand  were 
between  five  and  eight  hundred  old  soldiers. 
There  were  delegates  from  the  neighboring 
counties  and  from  all  over  Kentucky,  perhaps 
ten  or  twelve  thousand  in  all.  Everywhere  were 
buckeye  branches  and  waving  banners  and  log 
cabins. 

The  exercises  began  with  a  welcome  to  the 
soldiers,  followed  by  a  presentation  of  resolu- 
tions by  John  A.  McClung.  John  Chambers 
then  delivered  a  speech,  and  Marshall  Key  read 
the  resolutions  of  the  Harrisburg  Convention 
nominating  Harrison.  More  speeches  followed. 
Morehead,  Metcalfe,  Menefee,  Eichard  Doug- 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  101 

lass  of  Ohio,  and  others  paid  their  homage  to 
the  famous  victor  of  Tippecanoe  and  the 
Thames.  From  three  different  stands  at  the 
same  time  speakers  told  the  gathered  crowds 
of  the  rugged  virtues  of  Harrison  and  hurled 
invectives  at  the  artful  Van  Buren. 

But  the  speeches  were  not  all  that  had  been 
prepared  for  the  delectation  of  the  multitude. 
Perhaps  they  alone  would  not  have  attracted  a 
gathering  of  such  proportions.  There  followed 
a  banquet.  Tables  arranged  in  a  hollow  square 
about  the  large  log  cabin  of  the  Central  Tippe- 
canoe Club  were  heavily  loaded  with  all  man- 
ner of  things  good  to  eat.  Near  by  —  and  per- 
haps not  least  acceptable  —  was  the  large  table 
piled  with  barrels  and  hogsheads  of  hard  cider, 
the  beverage  of  the  campaign.  And  when  the 
salute  of  a  hundred  guns  was  fired  two  large 
wreaths  of  smoke,  disengaging  themselves,  rose 
and  floated  high  above  the  heads  of  the  observ- 
ant Whigs  until  just  over  the  speaker's  stand 
they  dispersed  —  an  omen  of  the  triumph  of 
the  two  Whig  candidates.  At  least  so  the  en- 
thusiastic followers  of  the  old  man  of  battles 
told  themselves  as  they  finally  took  their  leave 
of  the  festive  scene.^*^^ 

From  the  day  of  this  celebration  Chambers 
was  a  busy  man.    In  meetings  at  home  and  in 


102  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  surrounding  regions  he  charged  the  admin- 
istration with  the  responsibility  for  the  finan- 
cial tribulations  and  with  corrupt  practices, 
protested  against  the  encroachment  of  the  ex- 
ecutive upon  the  legislative  department,  and 
sounded  the  cry  for  Harrison  and  reform.  Ev- 
ery month  saw  greater  enthusiasm  in  the  West 
and  more  frequent  Whig  meetings. 

In  September  he  joined  a  party  of  fellow 
Whigs  and  took  the  steamer  Transit  up  the 
river  on  the  way  to  a  big  celebration  at  Chilli- 
cotlie,  Ohio.  At  Portsmouth  the  party  received 
ample  reenforcements ;  and  as  the  ^ve  boats  — 
one  filled  with  ladies  and  four  with  the  delega- 
tions from  Portsmouth  and  Kentucky  —  made 
ready  to  ascend  the  Scioto,  speeches  were  de- 
livered by  Ex-Governors  Morehead  and  Wic- 
liffe.  At  eight  o'clock  on  the  morning  of 
Thursday,  September  17,  they  arrived  at  Chil- 
licothe  and  mingled  with  the  thousands  who 
awaited  the  arrival  of  General  Harrison.  About 
ten  thirty  a  shout  went  up  from  the  crowd 
gathered  near  the  platform  of  the  corner  of 
Madeira's  Hotel  that  Old  Tip  was  coming.  The 
rain  came  down  in  a  deluge  while  the  speaking 
progressed,  but  what  cared  the  party  that  ral- 
lied to  the  standard  of  log  cabin  and  hard  cider. 
Again  in  the  afternoon  there  was  speech-mak- 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  103 

ing  at  a  sugar  grove  near  by.  For  nearly  two 
hours  Harrison  spoke,  and  was  followed  by 
John  Chambers  and  Charles  S.  Todd. 

The  exercises  continued  on  the  day  follow- 
ing when  Harrison  was  presented  with  a  cane 
from  the  battlefield  of  Tippecanoe.  As  the 
Kentucky  delegation  was  about  to  take  its  leave, 
a  meeting  was  held  at  which  resolutions  of 
thanks  to  the  people  of  Chillicothe  were  passed. 
Chambers  acted  as  chairman  and  Lewis  Col- 
lins, the  editor  of  The  Maysville  Eagle  and 
Kentucky's  pioneer  historian,  served  as  sec- 
retary.208 

But  perhaps  the  biggest  celebration  was  the 
Miami  Valley  convention  that  took  place  at 
Dayton,  Ohio.  Here  was  gathered,  so  said  the 
Whigs,  a  crowd  of  one  hundred  thousand  cheer- 
ing enthusiasts.  General  Harrison  spoke  for 
about  an  hour  of  the  ** great  and  good  cause'*. 
Colonel  Christie  of  New  Orleans,  and  John 
Chambers  of  Kentucky  also  appeared  and  ad- 
dressed the  ten  acres  of  people.  The  speech  of 
the  latter  (if  we  may  trust  the  enthusiastic 
judgment  of  the  correspondent  of  Niles^  Regis- 
ter) was  **  enlivened  by  frequent  sallies  of  real 
humor.  He  gave  a  narrative  of  the  battle  of 
the  Thames,  which  he  should  be  induced  to 
write  out  for  publication.*'    Handling  Colonel 


104  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

E.  M.  Johnson  with  consideration  because  of 
his  military  services,  ^*he  took  hold  of  the  great 
*  petticoat  hero/  Senator  Allen,  and  held  him  up 
before  the  searching  fire  of  his  sarcasm  and  re- 
buke, turning  him  first  this  way  and  then  that, 
basting  him  now  here  and  now  there,  as  the 
blisters  were  seen  to  rise  upon  his  epidermis, 
very  much  as  a  log-cabin  house-wife  manages 
a  roasting  goose,  till  every  one  present  must 
have  had  a  feeling  of  pity  for  the  Ajax  of  loco- 
focracy  in  Ohio.''^^^ 

A  liberty  pole  one  hundred  fifty  feet  high 
was  raised  at  Washington  on  the  twenty- sixth 
of  September,  and  Chambers  was  one  of  the 
speakers.  Less  than  a  week  later  he  was  at 
Eipley,  Ohio,  where  the  Whigs  of  Ohio  and 
Kentucky  had  gathered.  Harrison  was  there 
and  so  were  Todd  and  Wicliffe  and  Metcalfe, 
and  they  spoke  to  a  crowd  of  perhaps  twenty 
thousand.  During  the  remarks  of  Harrison 
the  clouds  were  very  threatening,  and  Cham- 
bers, who  followed  him,  had  scarcely  finished 
complimenting  the  ladies  when  the  rain  de- 
scended. Then  Todd  spoke  and  after  the  rain 
Wicliffe  and  Metcalfe  were  heard.  Down  at 
the  river,  meanwhile,  F.  T.  Chambers  and  Mc- 
Clung  were  addressing  crowds  from  the  top  of 
a  ferry  boat.^^^ 


THE  LOG  CABIN  CAMPAIGN  105 

Thus  went  the  last  weeks  of  that  remarkable 
campaign.  On  Monday  morning  before  the  elec- 
tion a  last  grand  rally  was  held  in  each  precinct 
in  Mason  County,  and  at  the  one  in  Washington 
the  voice  of  Chambers  was  heard  in  a  final 
plea.2^^  Then  for  a  few  days  the  country  held 
its  breath  and  watched  the  bulletins.  In  Ken- 
tucky, Harrison  defeated  his  opponent  by  a 
majority  of  nearly  twenty-six  thousand. 

In  the  country  at  large  a  considerable  ma- 
jority for  the  Whig  ticket  convinced  the  unbe- 
lieving Democrats  that  the  campaign  which 
they  had  so  derided  had  borne  fruit  in  victory 
for  the  log  cabin  candidate;  and  an  electoral 
vote  of  two  hundred  thirty-four  to  sixty 
brought  an  end,  for  the  time  being,  to  the  long 
Democratic  regime.  The  campaign  on  the  part 
of  the  Whigs  was,  to  say  the  least,  not  a  digni- 
fied one.  Lacking  almost  entirely  in  logical 
appeal,  ostentatious  in  its  display,  ludicrous 
oftentimes  in  the  extravagance  of  enthusiasm, 
it  nevertheless  was  successful  in  welding  to- 
gether a  variety  of  conflicting  elements.  It  is 
probable,  however,  that  such  methods  would 
scarcely  have  brought  victory  had  not  the  coun- 
try been  ready  and  eager  for  a  change  from  the 
calamitous  four  years  that  constituted  the  ad- 
ministration of  Martin  Van  Buren. 


With  Harrison  in  the  White  House 

When  William  Henry  Harrison  was  command- 
ing General  of  the  Army  of  the  Northwest  in 
the  campaign  of  1813  a  young  volunteer  aid 
from  Kentucky  had  won  his  gratitude  by  bring- 
ing order  out  of  the  confusion  of  his  military 
papers.  As  he  neared  his  seventieth  year  he 
ran  for  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States, 
and  in  the  Ohio  Valley  he  found  his  former 
aid  —  now  a  man  of  sixty  —  making  effective 
stump  speeches  in  his  behalf.  He  did  not  for- 
get the  service  and  when  the  year  1841  came  in, 
and  the  time  for  the  inaugural  ceremony  ap- 
proached, he  sent  for  John  Chambers  to  ac- 
company him  to  Washington.2^^  Charles  S. 
Todd,  at  Harrison's  request,  also  joined  the 
party,  and  together  with  his  two  veteran  aids 
the  happy  old  man  made  his  way  to  the  Nation's 
capital. 

On  the  morning  of  the  ninth  of  February  the 
President's  party  arrived  at  Washington 
*^  amidst  a  storm  of  snow  and  of  people  ".^"^^ 


IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE  107 

A  great  crowd,  headed  by  the  Mayor  of  the 
city,  escorted  the  President  elect  to  the  City 
Hall  and  cordially  welcomed  him.^^^  Harrison 
replied  to  the  speeches  and  then  withdrew  to 
Gadsby's  Hotel,  which  he  made  his  headquar- 
ters until  the  fourth  of  March.  Within  a  few 
days  the  new  cabinet  was  announced.^*^  Daniel 
Webster  was  to  be  Secretary  of  State,  Thomas 
Ewing  of  Ohio,  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  John 
Bell,  Secretary  of  War,  Gr.  E.  Badger,  Secretary 
of  the  Navy,  John  J.  Crittenden,  Attorney-Gen- 
eral, and  Francis  Granger,  Postmaster-General. 
Harrison's  inauguration  was  a  scene  of  great 
popular  demonstration.  Tippecanoe  clubs,  mili- 
tia companies,  college  students,  and  veterans  of 
the  War  of  1812  joined  in  the  procession.  Log 
cabins  and  banners  resurrected  from  the  fall 
campaign  were  there  in  abundance.  There  was 
an  entire  lack  of  pageantry.  Harrison  was 
described  as  riding  **on  a  mean-looking  white 
horse,  in  the  center  of  seven  others,  in  a  plain 
frock-coat  or  surtout,  undistinguishable  from 
any  of  those  before,  behind,  or  around  him."  ^n 
From  the  east  front  of  the  Capitol  he  read  his 
inaugural  address  —  a  rather  cumbrous  affair 
filled  with  references  to  the  politics  of  the 
Eomans.2*2  rpj^g  address  had  been  submitted 
to  Daniel  Webster  and  revised  somewhat  by 


108  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

him  to  the  sacrifice  of  many  allusions  to  an- 
cient history.213 

The  hero  of  Tippecanoe  now  became  master 
of  the  White  House.  It  was  reported  that,  in 
spite  of  the  appropriations  of  the  preceding 
administrations  and  the  reputed  luxury  of  Mar- 
tin Van  Buren's  regime,  Harrison  found  the 
Presidential  home  almost  destitute  of  furniture 
and  requested  Chambers  to  purchase  whatever 
was  necessary,  remarking  that  he  would  pay 
for  it  himself  if  Congress  refused.^^*  There 
were  many  things  of  importance  to  be  thought 
of  in  the  first  few  weeks  of  the  new  administra- 
tion but  it  is  probable  that  the  matter  which 
most  fully  absorbed  the  mind  of  the  new  Execu- 
tive, forced  itself  into  his  leisure  hours,  and 
followed  him  into  the  wakeful  night  was  the 
distribution  of  public  offices.  Long  years  had 
the  Whigs  been  without  participation  in  gov- 
ernmental office,  and  with  the  turn  of  the  politi- 
cal wheel  there  appeared  a  clamorous  army  of 
applicants. 

Chambers,  who  had  agreed  to  act  as  the 
President's  private  secretary  until  the  arrival 
of  William  Taylor  (Harrison's  son-in-law), 
was  in  a  position  to  fully  appreciate  the  un- 
pleasant features  of  the  situation.^i^  Knowing 
that  he  was  a  strong  personal  friend  of  the 


IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE  109 

President  and  in  a  position  of  intimate  influ- 
ence, the  office  seekers  came  to  him  by  the 
scores,  pleading,  cajoling,  and  demanding  his 
help  with  the  giver  of  political  plums.  To 
Chambers  this  was  exceedingly  irksome,  and  he 
soon  began  to  wish  to  get  away  from  the  city 
of  Washington  and  return  to  his  private  affairs. 
But  the  President  objected.  Chambers  must 
stay  in  Washington  and  accept  some  office.  He 
offered  him  the  place  of  Treasurer,  but  Cham- 
bers declined  the  honor.  The  governorship  of 
the  Territory  of  Iowa  was  tendered  to  him,  but 
this  he  also  refused.  The  President,  however, 
had  set  his  heart  on  placing  his  old  friend  in 
office,  and  so  Chambers  at  length  agreed  to  ac- 
cept the  post  in  lowa.^^^ 

The  position  of  Governor  of  the  Territory  of 
Iowa  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs 
carried  a  salary  of  twenty-five  hundred  dol- 
lars.^*"^  Naturally  there  were  others  who  de- 
sired the  place.  Out  in  Iowa,  where  Robert 
Lucas  was  holding  his  last  few  weeks  of  of- 
fice, at  least  two  had  started  for  Washington 
to  sue  for  the  privilege  of  succeeding  him.^^^ 
Persistent  rumors  came  to  the  Territory  to  the 
effect  that  General  James  Wilson  of  New 
Hampshire  was  to  be  appointed.^*^  Finally 
news  reached  the  frontier  that  Chambers  had 


110  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

received  the  position.  The  story  was  circulated 
that  Webster  had  proposed  the  name  of  James 
Wilson  and  that  the  President  had  said  that 
he  had  promised  Chambers  the  appointment 
and  if  he  wanted  it  he  should  have  it.  Webster 
insisted  that  his  friend  ^Hall  Jim''  must  go  to 
Iowa,  whereupon  Old  Tippecanoe  replied  with 
emphasis  that  the  Secretary  of  State  might  *^go 
to  the  devir'.22o 

Webster  was  not  the  only  disappointed  cabi- 
net member.  John  J.  Crittenden  of  Kentucky, 
though  he  had  always  been  a  close  friend  of 
Chambers,  had  made  up  his  mind  that  the  gov- 
ernorship of  Iowa  should  go  to  his  friend,  Or- 
lando Brown,  an  editor  of  Frankfort.  ''I  am 
for  you  as  governor'',  he  wrote  in  January, 
'  *  and  I  shall  not,  as  lazy  lawyers  often  do,  sub- 
mit the  case ;  I  shall  argue  that  case ;  I  shall  try 
to  give  Chambers  some  other  directions.  We 
are  old  friends,  and  I  can  do  as  much  with  him 
as  almost  anybody  else  can^.^^i  ^^  Eobert  P. 
Letcher,  Governor  of  Kentucky,  and  a  strong 
mutual  friend,  he  wrote  urging  him  to  ** write 
to  *01d  Tip'  a  strong  letter  in  favor  of  Old 
Master' \  as  Brown  was  called.^^^ 

A  picturesquely  interesting  character  was 
Orlando  Brown.  To  answer  Crittenden's  let- 
ter, he  chose  a  time  when  his  wife  and  the  chil- 


IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE  HI 

dren  were  attending  a  sleight  of  hand  perform- 
ance by  Monsieur  Adrien.  **Your  humble  ser- 
vant is  left  at  home'*,  he  wrote,  **to  take  care 
of  the  baby  and  to  muse  over  his  contemplated 
government  of  Iowa.  Ah  Sir,  the  way  I  would 
play  Governor  would  be  interesting.  I  would 
write  a  marvellous  proper  message  and  set 
most  wholesome  examples*'.  He  disclaimed  the 
idea  that  emolument  or  reward  were  motives. 
The  strong  motive  with  him  was  the  desire  to 
leave  his  children  a  name  **and  not  to  have 
them  designated  as  the  editor's  sons,"^^^ 

Letcher's  letters  also  add  to  the  illuminating 
glimpse  of  the  candidate's  character.  **The 
young  Govr.  of  Iowa",  he  wrote  in  the  latter 
part  of  February,  **is  sitting  up,  in  the  corner, 
smoking  one  of  my  segars  and  reading  the 
Edinburg  Review.  He  looks  very  much  like  a 
Govr.,  and  I  am  very  particular  in  telling  him 
how  to  act,  when  he  gets  to  his  Govnt,  as  much 
so,  as  ever  Don  Quixote  was,  in  lecturing  San- 
cho.  I  shall  lecture  him  also,  upon  another 
point,  and  that  is,  to  be  ready  not  [to]  take  the 
office  if  it  should  not  come/*^^* 

In  Washington,  meanwhile,  the  round  of 
events  of  the  first  month  of  the  administration 
was  varied  and  continuous.  Daily  did  the  vex- 
ing problem  of  patronage  confront  the  old  war 


112  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

hero.  He  met  the  cabinet  in  frequent  meetings 
to  settle  administrative  policies.  He  canvassed 
the  financial  situation  and  issued  a  call  for  an 
extra  session  of  Congress,  and  from  time  to 
time  adapted  himself  to  the  social  necessities 
of  the  Presidency.  On  the  thirteenth  of  the 
month  he  entertained  at  dinner  a  party  includ- 
ing Tyler  and  Calhoun,  Webster  and  Clay,  Crit- 
tenden and  E.  M.  Johnson,  and  Chambers  and 
Todd.225 

The  next  day  Crittenden  burned  the  midnight 
oil  to  write  a  disappointed  letter  to  Governor 
Letcher.  ^*I  have  been  laying  my  trains'',  he 
said,  '*and  flattering  myself  that  I  was  making 
progress  toward  the  accomplishment  of  our  ob- 
ject in  making  Orlando  governor  of  Iowa. 
Chambers  was  to  be  located  here.  I  was  pleased 
to  think  that  was  fixed.  To  my  surprise,  in  the 
last  few  days,  I  have  understood  that  Chambers 
has  changed  his  mind,  and  is  to  go  to  Iowa  as 
Governor,  and  the  indications  now  are  that  such 
will  be  the  result.  This  is  going  a  little  ahead 
of  what  is  generally  known,  and  you  must  treat 
it  as  confidential;  but  disagreeable  as  it  is,  you 
must  let  Orlando  know.  I  like  Chambers,  and 
cannot  blame  him,  but  he  has  disappointed  me 
in  two  respects, —  by  not  staying  here  himself, 
and  interfering  with  my  hopes  for  Orlando."  ^26 


IN  THE  WHITE  HOUSE  113 

John  Chambers  was  commissioned  Governor 
of  the  Territory  of  Iowa  by  President  Harri- 
son on  March  25,  1841.227  Two  days  later  the 
President  was  seized  with  a  chill  and  his  doctors 
began  a  fight  with  pneumonia.^^s  For  a  little 
more  than  a  week  he  struggled  and  suffered. 
On  the  second  of  April,  Chambers  and  Todd  in- 
formed those  who  inquired  at  the  White  House 
that  the  President  was  better  f^^  but  on  the 
third  he  became  worse,  and  a  half  hour  past 
midnight  on  the  morning  of  Palm  Sunday, 
April  4,  the  **kind  old  man*'  died.  Chambers 
and  Todd  were  with  him  at  the  last,  and  when 
life  had  departed  Chambers  reverently  closed 
the  eyes  of  his  long  time  friend.  The  funeral 
took  place  on  Wednesday,  April  7.  After  re- 
maining at  the  White  House  for  a  few  days 
making  private  memoranda  of  the  President's 
business  for  his  son,  and  assisting  the  bereaved 
family  in  their  preparations  for  departure,^^^^ 
he  set  out  for  Kentucky  to  make  ready  for  his 
new  field  of  labor.  In  company  with  0.  H.  W. 
Stull,23i  who  had  been  appointed  Secretary  of 
the  Territory,  he  reached  Maysville  on  the  nine- 
teenth of  April,  and  proceeded  at  once  to  Cedar 
Hill.282 

On  a  Monday  morning,  the  third  of  May,  1841, 
a  steamboat  left  Maysville  with  its  prow  turned 

8 


114  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

down  the  river  toward  the  distant  Territory  of 
Iowa,  and  among  the  passengers  was  John 
Chamber s.^^^  In  the  days  when  there  were  no 
steamboats  and  when  the  little  port  clinging  to 
the  outer  edge  of  the  Nation's  growth  bore  the 
primitive  name  of  Limestone,  he  had  come  there 
a  boy  of  fourteen.  Now,  a  man  of  past  three 
score  years,  he  was  leaving  a  State  large  in 
population  and  in  power  to  guide  the  uncertain 
ways  of  a  western  Territory  —  a  handful  of 
frontier  communities  strung  along  the  west 
shore  of  the  Father  of  Waters. 

Somewhere  on  the  Ohio  bank,  probably  at 
Cincinnati,  they  stopped  on  the  fifth  of  the 
month  —  long  enough  for  Chambers  to  take  the 
oath  of  office  before  John  McLean,  Associate 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States.  At  Louisville  he  landed  again  and 
bought  two  new  dresses  to  send  home  as  pres- 
ents to  his  daughters  Mary  and  Laura.  From 
there  they  passed  on  to  St.  Louis  and  up  the 
Mississippi  Eiver.  At  six  o'clock  in  the  even- 
ing of  May  12,  1841,  they  reached  the  town  of 
Burlington. 


XI 

Beyond  the  Mississippi 

As  the  steamboat  which  brought  John  Cham- 
bers to  his  new  post  neared  the  landing  at 
Burlington  the  afternoon  sun  was  fast  dropping 
to  the  edge  of  the  hills  that  formed  the  sky 
line  back  of  the  little  pioneer  community.  The 
inhabitants  of  the  town  had  not  been  entirely 
unaware  of  his  approach.  But  the  news  had 
reached  them  tardily,  and  though  the  Whigs 
made  instant  plans  to  hire  the  ferry-boat 
**Shockoquon"  and  meet  him  on  the  river  be- 
tween Fort  Madison  and  Burlington,  they 
found  the  time  too  limited  for  such  honors  and 
regretfully  gave  them  up.^^^  The  wharf  was 
well  lined  with  citizens,  however,  as  the  steam- 
boat came  to  its  final  moorings,  and  they  gave 
to  the  new  Executive  a  royal  Whig  reception. 

On  the  bank  of  the  river  they  began  cere- 
monies at  once.  James  W.  Grimes,  a  sprightly 
young  lawyer  of  twenty-four  years  of  age,  had 
been  deputized  to  speak  the  Welcoming  word. 
Three  years  before  Grimes  had  been  one  of  a 

115 


116  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

committee  to  invite  the  newly  arrived  Gover- 
nor Lucas  to  a  public  dinner  in  Ms  honor,  but 
during  the  administration  of  that  stern  old  first 
Governor  the  two  men  had  found  many  points 
of  disagreement.^^^  Now  the  young  Whig  re- 
joiced to  greet  a  Governor  of  his  own  party 
and  his  tongue  was  lavish  in  praise. 

In  the  new  Executive,  he  said,  the  people 
recognized  one  of  the  pioneers  of  the  West,  a 
veteran  legislator  of  the  chivalrous  State  of 
Kentucky,  a  leader  in  national  councils,  a  cham- 
pion of  the  Nation's  rights  in  the  second  war 
for  independence,  but  above  all  they  rejoiced 
to  behold  in  him  one  who  enjoyed  the  unbound- 
ed confidence  of  their  late  venerated  Chief 
Executive.  He  digressed  long  enough  to  eulo- 
gize Harrison,  and  then  returned  to  his  more 
immediate  diity.  ^^We  bid  you  welcome'',  he 
said,  **to  the  smiling  prairies  of  Iowa;  we  wel- 
come you  to  the  hospitalities  of  our  city,  and 
to  the  warm  affections  of  a  generous  and  noble 
hearted  people.  We  bid  you  welcome  as  the 
personal  friend  and  companion  in  arms  of  the 
illustrious  and  lamented  Harrison.  We  wel- 
come you  as  our  adopted  fellow  citizen,  and  as 
the  Executive  head  of  our  Territory." ^^^ 

The  white  haired  man  of  sixty  years  listened 
gravely  to  the  warm  words  of  the  sturdy  fron- 


BEYOND  THE  MISSISSIPPI  117 

tiersman,  and  replied  quietly  and  with  tact. 
He  intended,  he  said,  to  identify  himself  with 
the  interests  and  the  prosperity  of  the  Terri- 
tory—  to  make  it  his  future  home  and  the 
home  of  his  family.  He  would  be  a  Hawkeye 
in  spirit  and  truth,  and  in  the  discharge  of  of- 
ficial duties  would  try  to  do  impartial  justice 
to  all.  He  urged  that,  as  citizens  of  a  Territory 
not  participating  in  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  they  refrain  from  identifying 
themselves  with  the  political  differences  and 
party  interests  existing  between  the  States. 

If  he  had  not  appreciated  the  fact  before, 
the  realization  must  now  have  presented  itself 
forcibly  to  John  Chambers  that  he  had  jour- 
neyed to  the  border  line  and  that  he  had  under 
his  tutelage  a  raw  young  Commonwealth  of 
pioneers.  But  he  had,  as  Grimes  intimated, 
been  a  pioneer  himself.  **In  my  first  descent 
of  the  Ohio  river,''  he  said,  **the  traces  of  civili- 
zation were  *few  and  far  between;'  a  few  log 
cabins  were  its  only  representatives  in  what 
now  constitutes  the  populous  and  flourishing 
State  of  Ohio.  I  am  not  therefore  unacquainted 
with  the  value  of  frontier  population;  it  will 
always  be  found,  as  it  always  has  been  in  our 
country,  to  include  the  industrious  and  enter- 
prising from  every  part  of  the  Union;  and  in 


118  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

times  of  difficulty  and  danger  more  than  an 
equal  proportion  of  the  bone  and  sinew  of  the 
nation/' 237  ^\\nien  he  had  finished  he  was  es- 
corted to  the  National  House,  the  new  Gover- 
nor leaning  on  the  arm  of  Colonel  Bennett; 
while  James  G.  Edwards,  the  Whig  editor  of 
Burlington  ^*  brought  up  the  rear  with  a  small 
troop  of  the  Gov's  negroes.''  ^^^ 

The  dignified  old  man  whom  the  citizens  of 
the  little  river  town  greeted  so  stoutly  had 
turned  the  pages  to  a  new  chapter  in  the  story 
of  his  life,  but  it  was  the  chapter  that  contained 
the  climax  of  his  career.  He  came  in  his  late 
years  to  scenes  like  those  he  had  known  in  his 
boyhood.  As  Governor  of  Iowa  he  found  him- 
self in  charge  of  a  pioneer  commonwealth 
which  had  before  it  the  same  long  process  of 
development  which  he  had  witnessed  for  nearly 
half  a  century  in  the  State  of  Kentucky. 

Sixty  years  well  lived  and  full  of  honors  he 
had  put  behind  him.  The  physical  vigor  that 
he  had  carried  into  the  court  room  in  his  early 
professional  career  he  no  longer  retained.  The 
spirit  which  had  flashed  fire  at  the  accusations 
of  Barry  and  Eowan  in  the  Desha  trial  burned 
more  quietly  now,  but  it  was  only  subdued  in 
the  intense  heat  of  a  whiter  flame.  The  three 
score  years  had  whitened  his  hair  and  drawn 


BEYOND  THE  MISSISSIPPI  119 

lines  in  his  face.  He  had  grown  stouter  in  fig- 
ure and  slower  in  movement.  His  younger 
years  and  more  active  ways  he  had  given  to 
Kentucky  —  to  her  law  courts  and  her  army 
of  defense,  to  her  legislature  and  to  her  Con- 
gressional delegation.  But  there  had  come  to 
him  a  maturity  of  judgment  and  ripeness  of 
wisdom  that  time  alone  could  bring.  Now  he 
had  moved  far  from  the  land  which  for  so  many 
years  had  been  moulding  him  for  larger  duties ; 
and  out  to  the  West  where  two  great  rivers  em- 
braced a  fertile  soil  and  a  scattered  but  hardy 
population  he  had  come  in  the  late  afternoon  of 
his  life,  strong  with  the  strength  of  well-season- 
ed oak,  tried  by  years  of  experience  and  ready 
to  give  to  a  rugged  people  the  ripest  fruition 
of  his  three  score  years. 

The  energetic  spirit  bred  by  his  life  in  Ken- 
tucky was  in  no  way  lessened  by  the  lengthen- 
ing of  his  years.  His  mind  was  as  keen  as  ever 
and  more  widely  trained.  His  determination 
had  suffered  no  diminution,  though  experience 
had  mellowed  it  with  more  of  tact.  He  applied 
to  his  new  duties  the  same  indomitable  will  and 
the  same  tireless  and  conscientious  persistence. 
He  hated  shams  and  despised  hypocrisy  and 
denounced  both  as  plainly  as  ever. 

The  long  years  of  political  life  had  perhaps 


120  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

deepened  his  partisan  feeling.  He  was  a  Whig 
in  every  fiber  of  his  political  being.  But  he  did 
not  fail  to  recognize  that  he  was  a  citizen  as 
well  as  a  politician  —  a  Governor  as  well  as  a 
Whig  office-holder.  Scarcely  had  he  set  foot 
upon  the  soil  of  Iowa  before  he  was  urging  the 
citizens  to  avoid  partisan  strife;  and  through- 
out the  four  and  a  half  years  of  his  administra- 
tion he  made  it  his  creed  to  keep  his  official 
duties  clear  from  the  embroilments  of  party 
politics. 

Chambers  was  never  a  man  of  rugged 
health.239  A  disease  that  affected  his  chest  per- 
haps inclined  him  as  he  grew  older  to  droop 
his  head  forward  from  its  natural  erect  car- 
riage. He  was  a  large  man,  but  probably  not 
greatly  above  medium  height.^*^  In  personal 
appearance  he  was  always  most  scrupulously 
neat,  and  would  as  soon  have  thought  of  miss- 
ing his  breakfast  as  of  omitting  his  daily  shave. 
Perhaps  the  happiest  days  of  his  life  had  been 
those  early  days  when  his  wife  Hannah  dis- 
pensed hospitality  at  Cedar  Hill.  The  years 
that  followed  her  death  were  many  and  full  of 
activities,  but  they  could  not  blot  out  his  grief. 
The  lines  tightened  ever  more  closely  about  his 
lips  and  gave  an  air  of  stern  dignity  to  his  face ; 
but  through  eyes  that  were  calm  and  steadfast 


BEYOND  THE  MISSISSIPPI  121 

he  looked  out  upon  his  remaining  years  with 
unflinching  courage. 

One  who  came  to  the  Territory  of  Iowa  be- 
fore Chambers,  characterized  the  second  Gov- 
ernor as  *^a  sterling,  sturdy,  fresh-complex- 
ioned,  honest  gentleman  from  Kentucky/*  241 
Socially  he  was  genial  and  courteous,  and  to 
the  last  degree  kindly  and  generous  to  those  in 
need.  In  his  family  life  the  wealth  of  warm  and 
affectionate  feeling  showed  itself  most  strongly. 
During  the  periods  of  absence  from  home  he 
wrote  to  his  children  of  his  own  doings  and 
plans,  and  of  his  hopes  for  them.  He  encour- 
aged, praised,  and  sometimes  chided  —  all  in  a 
spirit  of  the  most  tender  affection.^*^  When  he 
came  to  Iowa  four  of  his  children  were  still  un- 
married —  Mary  and  Laura,  who  were  nineteen 
and  seventeen  years  old,  and  two  boys,  John 
James  and  Henry  who  were  fifteen  and  thir- 
teen.2*3  g^^  when  Chambers  first  went  out  to 
Iowa  he  took  none  of  his  immtiediate  family 
with  him,  intending  to  find  a  suitable  location 
and  then  have  Mary  and  Laura  come  out  and 
keep  house  for  him.^^*  It  was  a  year,  however, 
before  he  gathered  his  children  about  him  in 
the  Territory  of  Iowa.  Mr.  J.  0.  Phister  had 
accompanied  him  as  private  secretary  and 
proved  a  very  efficient  assistant.    Mr.  0.  H.  W. 


122  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Stull,  the  Secretary  of  the  Territory,  had  taken 
with  him  to  the  western  Commonwealth  his 
wife  and,  to  the  delight  of  the  impressionable 
young  men  of  the  Territory,  six  ^'blooming 
daughters  ^\245 

Eobert  Lucas,  the  outgoing  Governor,  was 
at  Iowa  City  when  his  successor  arrived  in  the 
Territory;  but  before  leaving  Burlington  he 
had  given  instructions  that,  should  Governor 
Chambers  arrive  in  his  absence  and  present  his 
credentials  and  oath  of  office,  the  seals  and  ap- 
purtenances of  the  Executive  Department 
might  be  turned  over  to  him.^*^  On  the  day  fol- 
lowing his  landing  at  Burlington,  May  13,  1841, 
Chambers  complied  with  the  necessary  formali- 
ties and  entered  upon  his  service  as  Governor 
of  the  Territory  of  Iowa.  A  facetious  young 
Democrat,  describing  this  transition  of  admin- 
istrations, wrote  to  Jesse  Williams:  **CoL 
Nealley  has  just  given  the  Gov.  the  keys  of  the 

hog  trough.     The  d — n  yankees  are  coming  in 
daily.'' 247 

Lucas  being  out  of  town,  Chambers  could  not 
call  upon  him.  He  might  and  probably  should 
have  written  to  Iowa  City  notifying  the  former 
Executive  of  his  arrival  and  assumption  of  of- 
fice, but  he  did  not  do  so,  and  it  was  more  than  a 
month  before  Lucas   returned  to  Burlington. 


BEYOND  THE  MISSISSIPPI  123 

Meantime  Daniel  Webster,  the  Secretary  of 
State,  had  sent  no  notice  whatever  to  Lucas  of 
his  removal  or  of  the  appointment  of  a  suc- 
cessor. Indeed,  it  was  not  until  June  17,  nearly 
three  months  after  the  date  of  the  new  commis- 
sion, that  Lucas  received  from  that  official  any 
tidings  of  the  change.  Such  delay  on  the  part 
of  Webster,  together  with  the  neglect  of  Cham- 
bers to  write  to  his  predecessor  announcing  his 
arrival,  caused  Lucas  some  embarrassment 
and  might  have  produced  considerable  bitter- 
ness between  the  two  Executives.^*^ 

Chambers  probably  looked  upon  the  delay  of 
the  Secretary  of  State  as  an  added  grievance 
against  that  gentleman.  He  and  Webster  had 
on  several  occasions  run  afoul  of  each  other. 
When  Webster  had  revised  the  Inaugural  Ad- 
dress of  President  Harrison  he  proposed  some 
changes,  which  in  a  conference  with  Chambers 
(then  acting  as  the  President's  private  sec- 
retary) led  to  a  clash  of  a  somewhat  bitter 
nature  between  the  two  men.^^^  A  few  days 
later  Webster  found  himself  rebuffed  by  Har- 
rison in  his  attempt  to  place  General  James 
Wilson  in  the  office  of  Governor  of  Iowa;  and 
when  the  nomination  of  Chambers  .was  sent  to 
the  Senate,  it  was  said  —  with  how  much  truth 
it  would  be  difficult  to  determine  —  to  have  been 


124  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

laid  upon  the  table  at  the  instigation  of  Web- 
ster.2«o 

In  December,  1841,  Chambers  wrote  a  long 
letter  to  his  friend  Crittenden,  who  seems  to 
have  warned  him  of  danger  to  his  official  posi- 
tion and  urged  him  to  use  prudence.  It  clearly 
illustrates  a  characteristic  of  Chambers  —  the 
tendency  to  be  outspoken  at  the  risk  of  his  per- 
sonal interests.  ^ '  I  fully  appreciate ' ',  he  wrote, 
*^your  admonition  to  be  *  cautious  and  prudent^ 
and  acknowledge  the  justice  of  your  remarks 
upon  my  ^manner*  but  it  is  *too  late  in  the  day' 
now  to  correct  it  effectually.  You  would  how- 
ever if  you  knew  how  very  prudent  I  am  in  my 
official  intercourse  give  mq  credit  for  greater 
amendment  than  you  could  have  expected;  but 
I  solemnly  assure  you  it  has  not  resulted  from 
the  fear  of  the  consequences  you  hint  at.  I 
should  hate  myself  if  I  thought  such  a  consid- 
eration could  influence  a  single  word  or  action 
of  my  life.  I  know  that  the  *  Ajax'  of  the  North 
has  an  evil  eye  upon  me,  and  I  shall  not  willing- 
ly quit  the  world  without  an  opportunity  of  tell- 
ing him  what  I  think  of  him.''  He  then  com- 
mented briefly  upon  the  trouble  ensuing  from 
the  proposed  change  of  the  Inaugural  Address, 
and  continued:  ^*He  may  even  in  the  short 
period  I  have  yet  to  remain  subject  to  Execu- 


BEYOND  THE  MISSISSIPPI  125 

tive  pleasure  produce  the  effect  you  apprehend 
may  result  from  my  own  rashness,  if  he  does  he 
will  do  well  to  conceal  his  agency  in  it  behind 
the  council  chamber  screen.'* ^bi 

Soon  after  taking  office  Chambers  visited 
Iowa  City,  then  an  infant  town  far  to  the  in- 
terior. It  had  been  created  as  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment of  the  Territory  and  the  capitol  build- 
ing, begun  during  the  administration  of  Lucas, 
was  now  nearing  completion.^'^^     j^  ^^g  j^qj- 

ready  for  use  by  the  legislature  in  the  winter 
of  1841,  but  the  citizens  of  the  new  town  gener- 
ously offered  accommodations  and  the  session 
was  convened  at  that  place  by  a  proclamation 
issued  by  Governor.  Lucas  on  April  30,  1841.2*^3 
Chambers  did  not  like  the  little  inland  town 
of  Iowa  City.  He  found  it  almost  without  mails 
and  not  convenient  of  access;  and  so  he  de- 
clared his  intention  of  residing  at  Burlington.^''* 
Six  miles  west  of  the  town  he  found  a  spot  to 
his  liking.  In  the  latter  part  of  the  year  he 
wrote  to  Crittenden:  **I  have  bought  a  farm 
near  Burlington  and  hope  to  be  able  to  secure 
two  or  three  thousand  acres  of  fine  land  within 
half  a  days  journey  of  it,  for  my  four  youngest 
children,  so  that  my  destiny  is  fixed.  I  am  to 
be  an  Iowa  farmer  for  the  remnant  of  my  life. ' ' 
And  he  reiterated  the  statement  so  often  upon 


126  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  lips  of  those  who  have  spent  many  years  in 
the  toils  of  political  affairs:  **I  long  for  the 
quiet  of  private  life  and  shall  embrace  it  at  the 
first  moment  I  can  do  so  without  an  apparent 
wilful  desertion  of  a  part  of  some  difficulty."  ^55 


XII 
Governor  op  the  Territory  of  Iowa 

The  Organic  Act  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa 
provided  that  the  Governor  should  also  act  as 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs.  As  Gover- 
nor he  was  to  receive  a  salary  of  fifteen  hundred 
dollars;  as  Superintendent  he  was  to  be  paid 
an  additional  thousand  dollars.^'®  Each  depart- 
ment carried  with  it  onerous  duties  and  prob- 
lems difficult  of  solution.  The  fact  that  one 
involved  the  government  of  white  settlers  while 
the  other  implied  supervision  of  the  red  inhab- 
itants naturally  made  the  two  distinct  and  sepa- 
rate. For  that  reason,  matters  relating  to  his 
activities  as  Governor  are  treated  separately, 
while  affairs  connected  with  his  superintend- 
ence of  the  Indians  will  receive  consideration  in 
a  later  chapter. 

It  would  perhaps  be  wrong  to  say  that  it  re- 
quired less  tact  to  preserve  peace  and  good  feel- 
ing with  the  white  than  with  the  red  population. 
Governor  Lucas,  even  though  the  legislature 
was  dominated  by  a  majority  of  his  own  politi- 

127 


128  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

cal  belief,  had  found  his  three  years  of  office 
somewhat  plentifully  strewn  with  thorns.  Gov- 
ernor Chambers  came  into  office  as  a  Whig 
appointee  when  the  Territory  of  Iowa  was 
largely  Democratic,  and  throughout  his  admin- 
istration he  had  to  contend  with  a  legislative 
body  in  which  his  political  party  was  in  the 
minority. 

The  people  of  Iowa  were  a  vigorous,  deter- 
mined people  who  had  left  the  more  settled 
portion  of  the  country  east  of  the  Mississippi 
and  had  cast  their  lot  with  things  new  and  un- 
tamed. Energy  they  had  in  abundance.  Poise 
and  an  evenness  of  temper  they  lacked.  An 
impulsive,  headstrong  vein  was  apparent  in  all 
their  activities.  It  cropped  out  in  their  politi- 
cal conventions,  in  their  legislative  sessions, 
and  in  the  editorial  columns  of  their  news- 
papers. The  editors  of  the  early  partisan 
sheets  were  prone  to  call  one  another  and  the 
men  of  the  opposing  party,  *^ liars",  ** pol- 
troons'', and  **  scoundrels '' ;  and  they  were 
made  no  wiser  by  an  occasional  caning  at  the 
hands  of  an  irate  victim  of  such  abuse.  Yet 
the  substratum  of  the  pioneer  population  pos- 
sessed a  sturdy  integrity  and  a  rugged  deter- 
mination that  conquered  the  rough  frontier  and 
in  the  few  short  years  of  Territorial  existence 


GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  129 

built  up  institutions  and  made  ready  for  capa- 
ble and  prosperous  Statehood. 

The  task  which  presented  itself  to  Chambers 
was  not  a  simple  one;  nor  were  the  thorns  of 
criticism  which  had  made  life  miserable  for  his 
predecessor  to  be  without  point  for  him.  In 
June,  1841,  the  month  after  his  arrival,  he  was 
denounced  in  the  resolutions  of  the  Democratic 
Territorial  Convention  as  an  enemy  to  the  West 
and  to  the  western  settler.**^^  The  practice  of 
the  Federal  government  in  sending  to  Iowa  as 
Governor  and  other  Territorial  officers  **  im- 
portations" from  the  east  was  also  a  source  of 
grievance  to  the  ambitious  citizens  of  the  young 
Commonwealth.2'8  But  Chambers  was  pos- 
sessed of  tact  and  his  intention  of  settling  per- 
manently in  Iowa  and  identifying  himself  with 
its  institutions  did  much  to  allay  this  ill  feeling. 

The  summer  months  of  1841  went  by  unevent- 
fully and  the  time  drew  near  for  the  convening 
of  the  Legislative  Assembly.  In  the  month  pre- 
vious to  the  meeting  of  that  body  Chambers 
found  himself  face  to  face  with  one  of  the  per- 
ennial problems  of  the  Territory  —  the  bound- 
ary dispute  with  the  State  of  Missouri.^'®  Dur- 
ing the  administration  of  Governor  Lucas  the 
trouble  had  reached  a  crisis  in  which  armed 
troops  gathered  on  both  sides  of  the  line  ready 

9 


130  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

for  action.  Violent  measures  were  averted, 
however,  and  the  matter  was  turned  over  to  a 
dallying  Congress  for  settlement.  While  the 
excitement  was  at  its  height  in  1839  Uriah  Gre- 
gory, a  Missouri  Sheriff,  was  arrested  by  the 
Iowa  authorities  and  held  a  prisoner  for  some 
time  at  Bloomington  (now  Muscatine).^^^ 

On  November  10,  1841,  Governor  Eeynolds 
of  Missouri  wrote  to  Governor  Chambers,  stat- 
ing that  the  legislature  of  Missouri  had  in- 
structed him  to  cause  suit  to  be  brought  on  be- 
half of  Gregory  against  the  persons  in  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Iowa  who  had  apprehended  and  im- 
prisoned him.  He  proposed  to  Chambers  that 
the  authorities  of  Missouri  and  Iowa  agree  as  to 
the  facts  in  the  case  and  submit  it  to  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  the  United  States  for  adjudica- 
tion. Chambers  replied  that  the  question  of 
the  boundary  was  one  over  which  the  Territory 
had  no  control,  since  the  Organic  Act  specific- 
ally reserved  to  Congress  the  power  to  alter 
the  Territorial  boundaries.  Hence  no  agree- 
ment into  which  they  might  enter  would  author- 
ize the  Supreme  Court  to  take  cognizance  of 
the  dispute. 

Furthermore,  Governor  Chambers  doubted 
whether  the  Supreme  Court  could  constitution- 
ally, even  upon  an  agreed  case  and  by  consent 


GOVERNOR  OP  IOWA  131 

of  the  parties,  take  jurisdiction  of  a  controversy 
^between  one  of  the  States  and  a  Territory 
which  remained  subject  to  the  legislation  of 
Congress.  He  expressed  his  intention,  never- 
theless, of  submitting  the  communication  of 
Grovemor  Reynolds  to  the  Legislative  Assem- 
bly ;  and  this  he  did  upon  their  convening  a  few 
weeks  later.*®^ 

On  December  6,  1841,  the  Fourth  Legislative 
Assembly  came  together  in  Butler's  Capitol  at 
Iowa  City.^*^  Both  houses  were  Democratic. 
In  the  preceding  session,  for  the  only  time'dur 
ing  the  Territorial  period,  the  Council  had  had 
a  majority  of  one  Whig;  but  between  sessions 
the  seat  of  J.  C.  Hawkins,  a  Whig,  was  vacated 
and  Shepherd  Leffler,  a  Democrat,  was  chosen 
as  his  successor,  thus  restoring  the  Democratic 
majority.  The  new  Governor  sent  his  message 
to  the  two  houses  on  Wednesday,  the  eighth  of 
December.2«3  The  subject  of  greatest  impor- 
tance in  the  mind  of  Governor  Chambers  was 
that  of  ascertaining  the  will  of  the  people  in 
regard  to  Statehood. 

A  year  and  a  half  before,  a  law  had  been 
passed  by  the  legislature  in  compliance  with 
the  earnest  recommendation  of  Governor  Lu- 
cas, providing  for  the  taking  of  a  vote  on  the 
question    of    a    State    Constitutional    Conven- 


132  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

tioii.2^'*  The  resulting  vote  in  August,  1840, 
had  been  decisive  against  a  convention.  Since 
then,  however,  urged  Chambers,  the  population 
had  been  rapidly  increasing;  and  recent  legis- 
lation by  Congress  for  the  participation  of 
Iowa  in  the  distribution  of  the  proceeds  of  the 
sale  of  public  lands  and  granting  to  new  States 
which  should  be  admitted  into  the  Union  five 
hundred  thousand  acres  of  land  for  internal 
improvements  had  removed  the  force  of  the 
argument  that  Statehood  would  mean  burden- 
some taxation.  So  he  reconunended  the  pass- 
age of  a  law  providing  for  the  taking  of  a  new 
vote  on  the  subject  of  the  formation  of  a  State 
Constitution. 

The  system  of  education  in  the  Territory  de- 
served the  close  attention  of  the  legislators. 
He  urged  that  provision  be  made  to  exempt 
from  the  necessity  of  bearing  arms  those  who 
had  conscientious  scruples  against  it.  The  con- 
dition and  financial  needs  of  the  public  build- 
ings at  Iowa  City  and  of  the  Penitentiary  re- 
ceived his  attention.  He  also  urged  the  need  of 
improving  the  Mississippi  Eiver  above  the 
mouth  of  the  Des  Moines  where  the  impedi- 
ments in  the  channel  caused  great  damage,  and 
recommended  an  appeal  to  Congress  for  aid  to 
this  end. 


GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  133 

There  was  little  that  could  be  called  partizan 
in  these  recommendations.  Indeed,  the  meas- 
ure upon  which  Chambers  laid  the  greatest 
stress,  the  matter  of  Statehood,  was  one  to 
which  the  Democrats  gave  their  support,  while 
the  Whigs  vigorously  opposed  it — knowing  full 
well  that  in  the  event  of  lowa^s  admission  the 
Democratic  majority  would  leave  no  room  for 
Whig  office  holders.  Chambers,  himself,  was 
well  aware  that  the  formation  of  State  govern- 
ment would  mean  the  termination  of  his  own 
position  and  that  it  would  give  to  the  ranks  of 
the  Democracy  an  additional  State.  He  wrote 
in  December  to  Crittenden  that  **They  are  now 
making  a  rush  for  a  state  government  and  will 
probably  present  their  constitution  next  winter 
and  if  Congress  will  receive  them,  they  will 
present  to  the  Senate  as  fine  a  specimen  of  in- 
veterate locofocoism  as  any  other  state  in  the 
Union."  26B  jj^  must  have  felt  that  conditions 
in  the  Territory  were  such  that,  aside  from  par- 
ty considerations,  they  warranted  Statehood, 
and  that  under  such  circumstances  it  was  only 
right  that  the  will  of  the  people  should  be  ascer- 
tained. 

The  Legislative  Assembly  responded  to  his 
suggestion  with  a  law,  approved  February  16, 
1842,  providing  for  a  vote  of  the  people  at  the 


134  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

next  general  election  on  the  subject  of  the  form- 
ation of  a  State  Constitution  and  government.^^^ 
There  ensued  a  vigorous  discussion  of  the  ques- 
tion in  the  spring  and  early  summer.  The 
argument  of  most  effect  against  Statehood  was 
that  it  would  entail  so  great  a  burden  of  taxa- 
tion. In  August  the  election  occurred,  and 
every  county  cast  a  majority  of  votes  against 
a  convention.  Once  more  had  the  people  de- 
cided that  taxation  was  too  high  a  price  for 
independence.2^^ 

Two  measures  received  the  executive  veto 
at  this  session  —  both  of  them  on  the  ground 
that  they  were  unconstitutional.^^^  The  first 
was  a  joint  resolution  relative  to  carrying  the 
mail  from  Iowa  City  to  Keosauqua.  Cham- 
bers vetoed  it  on  the  theory  that  it  necessitated 
a  departure  by  the  postmasters  from  their  du- 
ties to  the  Post  Office  Department.  An  attempt 
to  pass  it  over  his  veto  in  the  House  resulted 
in  a  vote  of  but  eight  to  eighteen.  The  other 
instance  was  his  veto  of  an  act  appointing  an 
Acting  Commissioner  at  Iowa  City  and  defin- 
ing his  duties.  The  bill  appears  to  have  con- 
templated the  welding  into  one  the  two  offices 
of  Territorial  Agent  and  Superintendent  of  the 
Public  Buildings  at  Iowa  City  (both  of  which 
were  filled  by  appointment  of  the  Governor) 


GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  135 

and  the  naming  in  the  bill  the  person  who  was 
to  occupy  the  newly  created  office.  Chambers 
quoted  from  the  Organic  Act  the  provision 
which  decreed  that  the  Governor  should  nomi- 
nate and  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent 
of  the  Council  appoint  all  officers  not  provided 
for  in  said  Organic  Act,  and  withheld  his  con- 
sent from  the  bill.  The  attempt  to  pass  it  over 
his  veto  was  unsuccessful.^^^ 

During  the  first  month  of  the  session  Cham- 
bers wrote  to  Crittenden:  **Your  wish  that  I 
may  be  popular  here  is  dictated  by  the  kindness 
of  your  heart,  but  the  soundness  of  your  head 
must  have  reminded  you  that  it  is  not  the  des- 
tiny of  a  territorial  Governor  if  he  honestly 
and  fearlessly  does  his  duty".  **The  truth 
is'*,  he  continued,  **I  found  a  decided  majority 
here  opposed  to  Whig  principles  ....  they 
retain  that  Majority  and  must  continue  to  do 
so  for  want  of  talents  and  firmness  to  oppose 
them."  270  Throughout  his  administration  there 
was  no  change  in  the  political  complexion  of 
the  legislature  and  he  remained  subject  to  the 
disadvantages  that  surround  a  minority  Gov- 
ernor. The  session  adjourned  on  February  18, 
1842,  and  Chambers  returned  soon  thereafter  to 
Burlington. 

He  now  asked  for  and  secured  permission 


136  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

from  the  Federal  government  to  make  a  trip  of 
some  weeks  to  Kentucky  on  private  business.^'^i 
On  the  twenty-first  of  March  he  left  on  a  steam- 
boat going  down  the  river  and  reached  Wash- 
ington, Kentucky,  about  the  first  of  April.2^2 
His  official  duties  were  performed  during  his 
absence  by  Secretary  Stull,  who  became  for  the 
time  being  Acting  Governor.^^^ 

Chambers  did  not  remain  many  weeks  in  his 
old  home,  for  he  was  back  again  in  Iowa  before 
the  middle  of  May.^^*  This  time  he  did  not 
come  alone.  His  oldest  son,  Joseph  Sprigg 
Chambers,  with  his  wife  and  little  daughter 
Mary,  accompanied  him,  and  the  two  boys, 
John  James  and  Henry,  also  became  emigrants 
at  this  time.^"^^  Upon  the  farm  west  of  Bur- 
lington Governor  Chambers  built  a  frame  dwell- 
ing and  upon  its  completion  installed  his  family 
therein  and  began  housekeeping.  Because  of 
the  abundance  of  grouse  in  the  vicinity  he 
named  the  place  ^^Grouseland'^  and  it  became 
a  center  for  neighborly  gatherings  and  a  ren- 
dezvous for  friends  both  white  and  red.  The 
two  boys  were  placed  in  a  family  where  they 
could  pursue  their  studies  and  at  the  same  time 
learn  something  of  industrial  occupations.^*^^ 

On  the  fifth  of  December  the  Legislative  As- 
sembly convened  at  Iowa  City  and  found  a  por- 


GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  137 

tion  of  the  new  capitol  finished  and  ready  for 
their  accommodation.  The  message  of  Gover- 
nor Chambers  ^^^  urged  again  the  salutary 
measures  which  he  had  emphasized  in  his  mes- 
sage of  the  preceding  session.  The  need  of  an 
adequate  system  of  confinement  for  convicted 
criminals  necessitated  the  devising  of  some 
means  to  complete  the  penitentiary.  Again  he 
invited  their  attention  to  the  matter  of  educa- 
tion, remarking  that  he  feared  that  **  until  the 
permission  to  organize  township  schools  is  ren- 
dered a  positive  duty,  enforced  by  proper  pen- 
alties for  neglect,  the  laws  now  in  force  will 
remain  inoperative. ''^^^  He  deplored  the  fact 
that  the  failure  of  the  officers  of  the  militia  to 
make  returns  concerning  numbers  and  equip- 
ments had  made  the  distribution  of  arms  by 
the  United  States  government  impossible,  and 
he  urged  provisions  for  the  enforcement  of  the 
laws  upon  this  subject. 

The  experience  of  another  year  had  but  con- 
firmed his  opinion  as  to  the  great  importance 
of  removing  the  obstructions  to  the  navigation 
of  the  Mississippi,  and  so  he  submitted  to  their 
consideration  the  question  of  memorializing  the 
present  Congress  for  an  appropriation.  In  re- 
sponse to  this  recommendation,  a  memorial  was 
passed  by  both  houses  asking  Congress  for  an 


138  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

appropriation  for  a  canal  at  each  of  the  rapids 
of  the  Mississippi  Eiver. 

He  called  attention  to  the  necessity  of  re- 
trenchment in  expenses  and  recommended  dis- 
patch in  legislative  business.^^^  Chambers  in 
writing  to  his  two  boys  near  the  beginning  of 
the  session  remarked  that  ^' There  is  very  little 
for  the  Legislature  to  do  that  can  be  useful,  and 
yet  there  is  not  the  least  probability  of  their 
adjourning  before  the  21st  [of]  February/ '^so 
The  session  came  to  a  close  on  February  17, 
1843,  four  days  before  the  date  predicted  by 
Chambers. 

Among  the  eighty-three  private  acts  of  this 
session  was  one  entitled  ^^An  Act  to  divorce 
certain  persons  therein  named. ' '  ^si  j^  released 
the  bonds  of  matrimony  from  no  less  than  nine- 
teen couples.  When  the  measure  was  sent  to 
Governor  Chambers  for  approval  he  returned 
it  with  an  emphatic  veto.^^^  jj^  deemed  the  an- 
nulment of  so  sacred  a  connection  to  be  mani- 
fest injustice  where  the  party  accused  was  de- 
nied an  opportunity  to  be  heard  and  held  that 
such  hearing  could  only  be  obtained  in  a  judi- 
cial proceeding.  He  emphasized  the  theory  of 
government  that  the  three  bodies  of  magistracy 
should  be  kept  distinct,  and  maintained  that  the 
legislative  exercise  of  the  divorce  power  was  an 


"■  GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  139 

encroachment  upon  the  sphere  of  the  judiciary. 
Hitherto,  he  said,  he  had  given  a  reluctant  ap- 
proval to  acts  affecting  individual  cases  of  this 
kind,  but  more  mature  reflection  and  examina- 
tion of  the  statute  books  had  satisfied  him  that 
too  much  facility  and  encouragement  had  been 
given  to  applications  for  interposition  and  that 
it  was  safer  and  more  consistent  with  the  prin- 
ciples of  government  to  leave  the  matter  to  the 
action  of  the  courts.  The  vetoed  bill  was  re- 
turned to  the  house  from  which  it  originated. 
Then  it  was  taken  up,  passed  over  the  executive 
disapproval  and  became  a  law. 

It  appears  from  the  correspondence  of  Jesse 
Williams,  a  young  Democrat  who  had  come  out 
to  the  Territory  from  Ohio  with  Governor  Lu- 
cas, that  he  heard,  in  the  summer  of  1843, 
rumors  of  changes  to  be  made  in  Territorial 
oflfices  by  President  Tyler.  Straightway  he 
planted  his  hopes  on  securing  the  position  of 
Secretary.  He  wrote  to  his  uncle,  M.  T.  Wil- 
liams of  Ohio,  who  made  inquiries  of  politicians 
in  that  State  and  replied  that  as  far  as  he  could 
ascertain  there  was  no  change  contemplated  — 
**none  as  to  the  Govr.  at  least  and  probably 
none  as  to  Secretary* '.2^3  Nevertheless,  in  the 
fall  Secretary  Stull  was  removed.^^*  A  Whig 
named  S.  J.  Burr  was  appointed  as  his  succes- 


140  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

sor;  and  Jesse  Williams  bided  his  time  until  a 
change  of  administration  brought  him  the  cov- 
eted position.2^^ 

When  the  Territorial  legislature  met  in  De- 
cember, 1843,  Governor  Chambers  **  considered 
it  his  duty'^  again  to  recommend  the  passage 
of  a  law  for  a  vote  of  the  people  on  the  question 
of  a  State  government.^^^  He  advised  also  that 
application  be  made  to  Congress  to  fix  and  es- 
tablish, at  the  present  session,  a  boundary  for 
the  proposed  State  and  to  sanction  the  calling 
of  a  convention. ' '  The  establishment  of  a  bound- 
ary for  us  by  Congress'',  he  said,  *'will  prevent 
the  intervention  of  any  difficulty  or  delay  in  our 
admission  into  the  Union,  which  might  result 
from  our  assuming  limits  which  that  body 
might  not  be  disposed  to  concede  to  us.''  ^^^ 

The  legislature  passed  an  act  in  February, 
1844,  for  ascertaining  the  will  of  the  people  at 
the  next  April  election.  A  memorial  was  also 
passed  asking  Congress  for  authorization  and 
an  appropriation  for  a  State  Constitutional 
Convention,  and  suggesting  boundaries  for  the 
State.  The  limits  proposed  in  the  memorial 
were  the  same  as  now  exist  for  Iowa  except  on 
the  north  where  the  boundary  line  followed  the 
forty-fifth  parallel  of  latitude  from  the  Missis- 
sippi to  the  source  of  the  Cactus  Eiver,  an  east 


GOVERNOR  OF  IOWA  141 

branch  of  the  Sioux,  and  thence  by  these  rivers 
to  the  Missouri.28^ 

The  assembling  of  a  new  Congress  caused 
Chambers  to  urge  the  legislature  to  renew  its 
appeals  to  that  body  for  relief,  by  means  of  a 
Federal  appropriation,  from  the  severe  losses 
due  to  the  obstructions  in  the  Mississippi  Eiver. 
The  Governor  also  made  recommendations 
concerning  the  completion  of  the  penitentiary, 
the  enforcement  of  returns  from  the  militia 
officers,  and  the  limiting  of  the  Territorial  ex- 
penses. He  reported  the  almost  total  neglect 
of  the  law  authorizing  the  organization  of  pub- 
lic schools  and  remarked  that  **it  is  mortifying 
to  see  how  little  interest  the  important  subject 
of  education  excites  among  us/'^*® 

On  Christmas  day,  1843,  Chambers  took  the 
occasion  to  write  to  the  two  boys  a  letter  full  of 
affectionate  advice.^^^*  The  family  was  by  this 
time  comfortably  settled  at  Grouseland.  The 
house  was  built  on  the  old  style  with  a  center 
hall  running  through  the  house  and  rooms  on 
either  side.  The  front  porch  extended  the  en- 
tire length  of  the  house.  Along  each  side  of  the 
drive  which  led  to  the  front  door  Chambers 
planted  trees,  and  about  the  farm  he  made  im- 
provements which  were  said  to  be  **  exemplary 
to  the  neighboring  farmers'*.     Here  he  lived 


142  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

when  not  attending  legislative  sessions  at  Iowa 
City.  Sprigg  and  his  wife  and  child,  John 
James  and  Henry,  and  Mary  and  Lanra  were 
with  him  this  winter  and  they  kept  open  house 
as  they  had  done  years  before  at  Cedar  Hill.^^^ 
Sprigg  Chambers  —  a  versatile  individual  who 
at  divers  times  in  his  life  practiced  law,  taught 
school,  edited  a  newspaper,  farmed,  and  inter- 
ested himself  in  politics  —  numbered  among 
his  accomplishments  the  ability  to  play  a  violin, 
and  often  the  neighbors  gathered  at  the  house 
for  a  dance  or  social.  At  such  times  the  merry- 
making ran  high,  and  it  is  even  told  that  the 
dignified  old  Governor  himself  once  added  to 
the  merriment  of  the  occasion  by  dancing  a  jig 
with  a  neighbor  until  the  shortness  of  his  wind 
compelled  him  to  desist.  Sometimes  friends 
came  out  from  town  to  visit  the  young  people. 
Associates  of  the  Governor  were  often  enter- 
tained, and  occasionally  his  red  skinned  friends 
of  the  plains  paid  him  the  honor  of  a  call. 


XIII 

State  Government  and  Boundaries 

In  April,  1844,  at  the  township  election,  a  vote 
was  taken  in  accordance  with  the  act  of  the 
Legislative  Assembly,  which  resulted  at  last  in 
a  large  majority  in  favor  of  a  State  Constitu- 
tional Convention.  The  election  of  delegates 
followed  in  August  after  a  partisan  campaign, 
and  less  than  one-third  of  the  seventy-three  suc- 
cessful candidates  were  of  the  Whig  party. 

In  October,  in  the  stone  Capitol  at  Iowa  City, 
the  first  Constitutional  Convention  of  Iowa  met 
and  framed  a  fundamental  law.^®^  As  a  nat- 
ural consequence  of  the  political  make-up  of  the 
constituent  assembly  the  constitution  which  re- 
sulted from  their  deliberations  was  a  somewhat 
partisan  instrument.  From  the  Convention  the 
new  constitution  passed  to  two  fields  of  discus- 
sion—  the  people  of  the  Territory  and  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States. 

Meanwhile  a  Presidential  campaign  was  stir- 
ring the  country.  The  possibility  of  early 
Statehood  seems  to  have  inspirited  both  Demo- 

143 


144  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

crats  and  Whigs  in  the  Territory,  and  the  re- 
spective admirers  of  James  K.  Polk  and  Henry 
Clay  held  enthusiastic  meetings  and  promul- 
gated lengthy  and  ardent  resolutions.  In  July 
a  convention  of  Whig  delegates  from  the  vari- 
ous townships  of  Des  Moines  County  met  at 
Burlington  with  Joseph  Sprigg  Chambers  as 
chairman.293  j^j.  ^]^g  same  time  a  big  mass  meet- 
ing was  held  attended  by  Whigs  from  all  over 
the  Territory  and  by  some  from  Illinois.  The 
meetings  of  the  latter  were  held  out  of  doors, 
and  speeches  were  delivered  to  a  crowd  of  over 
two  thousand.  The  banners,  the  mottoes,  and 
the  songs  that  had  made  famous  the  campaign 
of  1840  reappeared  in  profusion,  and  one  en- 
thusiastic delegation  came  marching  up  the 
streets  of  Burlington  bearing  aloft  a  tree  in 
which  was  perched  a  live  coon. 

During  the  progress  of  the  speaking  Gover- 
nor Chambers  was  seen  upon  the  grounds  and 
was  loudly  called  for  to  address  the  crowd.  He 
came  forward  and  said  that  he  must  be  excused 
from  making  a  political  speech.  He  had  made 
it  a  matter  of  principle  not  to  meddle  with  the 
political  excitement  of  the  day  as  long  as  he 
held  an  office  under  the  United  States  govern- 
ment. However,  he  would,  with  their  permis- 
sion, take  advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  say 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  145 

that  his  official  position  as  Governor  would 
cease  within  forty-eight  hours.  Information 
was  reported  to  have  reached  Burlington  on 
that  same  morning  from  St.  Louis  to  the  effect 
that  a  gentleman  from  that  town  had  been  ap- 
pointed as  his  successor.  He  assured  them  that 
he  had  endeavored  to  discharge  the  duties  of 
his  office  without  partiality  or  prejudice,  and 
that  in  making  appointments  he  had  sought  only 
for  integrity  and  capacity.  He  did  not  doubt 
that  he  had  often  erred  but  asked  them  to  re- 
member that  forgiveness  was  an  attribute  of 
Deity  which  mortals  were  enjoined  to  imitate. 
He  expressed  his  gratitude  for  the  kindness 
with  which  his  efforts  to  promote  the  interests 
of  the  Territory  had  been  received.  In  closing 
he  said  that  he  had  come  to  Iowa  with  the  inten- 
tion of  making  the  Territory  his  permanent 
place  of  residence,  that  he  had  bought  a  home 
and  had  found  it  surrounded  by  kind  and  excel- 
lent neighbors  with  whom  he  hoped  to  spend 
many  pleasant  hours.^®* 

With  regard  to  a  change  in  the  governorship, 
Chambers  was  mistaken.  The  rumor  of  a  new 
appointment  was  without  foundation;  and  so 
for  more  than  a  year  longer  the  old  Kentuckian 
administered  the  executive  affairs  of  the  Terri- 
tory of  Iowa.    But  circumstances  prevented  the 

10 


146  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

consvimmatioii  of  his  desire  to  retain  a  perma- 
nent home  in  Iowa.  His  urgent  efforts  to  induce 
other  members  of  his  family  to  migrate  to  the 
new  West  were  unavailing.  Three  months  later 
the  four  younger  children  had  returned  to  Ken- 
tucky. In  the  Family  Record  is  recorded  the 
death  of  John  James  on  September  30,  1844,  at 
Paris,  Kentucky .2^^  Letters  to  John  Chambers 
a  little  later  mention  Henry  as  slowly  recover- 
ing from  a  severe  illness,  and  Laura  is  spoken 
of  as  in  perfect  health  again.^^^  Whether  or  not 
sickness  necessitated  their  return  from  the 
West  can,  in  the  absence  of  more  specific  evi- 
dence, only  be  conjectured;  but  their  removal 
went  far  to  prevent  Chambers  from  making 
Iowa  the  home  of  his  last  days.  Sprigg  and  his 
family  remained  with  him  until  the  close  of  his 
administration  when  they  too  went  back  to  the 
familiar  haunts  of  Mason  County,  Kentucky. 

The  fall  elections  ended  for  a  time  the  Whig 
control  of  national  politics  and  determined  the 
choice  of  James  K.  Polk  as  President  of  the 
United  States.  Just  as  the  Whigs  had,  four 
years  before,  found  a  sudden  interest  in  the  ap- 
pointments of  a  new  President,  so  now  the 
Democrats  of  the  Territory  began  to  speculate 
and  to  lay  their  trains  for  the  capture  of  Terri- 
torial offices.    Ex-Governor  Robert  Lucas  was 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES     147 

mentioned  as  a  candidate  for  the  governorship, 
but  the  consensus  of  Democratic  hopes  seemed 
to  center  upon  Judge  Joseph  Williams. 

On  January  8,  1845,  twenty-three  men,  mem- 
bers of  the  bar  of  the  Supreme  Court  and  other 
citizens  of  the  Territory,  addressed  a  petition 
to  President-elect  Polk,  asking  that  Joseph  Wil- 
liams be  appointed  Governor  and  protesting 
against  the  practice  of  *  thrusting  upon  us 
strangers  &  non-residents  as  our  officers/' ^97 
The  petition  was  not  a  partisan  paper  for  it 
was  signed  by  as  stanch  a  Whig  as  James  W. 
Grimes.  But  it  was  of  course  impossible  for 
Polk  to  make  any  change  until  the  fourth  of 
March ;  and,  indeed,  it  was  many  months  after 
the  inauguration  before  the  new  incumbent  saw 
fit  to  remove  John  Chambers. 

The  Missouri  boundary  dispute  meantime 
was  still  far  from  being  settled.  In  May  of 
1842  Garrett  Davis  of  Kentucky,  who  had  suc- 
ceeded John  Chambers  as  Representative  in 
Congress  from  the  Twelfth  District  of  the  State 
of  Kentucky,  made  a  report  as  chairman  of  the 
Committee  on  Territories  relative  to  the  dis- 
puted line  and  accompanied  it  by  a  bill  declar- 
ing the  Sullivan  or  Indian  Boundary  Line  the 
proper  division  between  the  State  of  Missouri 
and  the  Territory  of  Iowa. 


148  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Delegate  Augustus  Caesar  Dodge  of  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Iowa  at  once  entered  upon  a  vigorous 
support  of  the  bill,  and,  ably  seconded  by  Gar- 
rett Davis,  succeeded  in  carrying  it  through 
the  House  in  spite  of  the  earnest  opposition  of 
John  C.  Edwards,  Representative  from  Mis- 
souri.2^^  In  the  Senate,  however,  with  no  one 
to  wage  battle  in  its  behalf,  the  bill  was  lost. 
For  two  years  the  matter  lay  untouched  by 
Congress.  Finally  on  June  27,  1844,  an  act  was 
approved  which  provided  for  the  determination 
of  the  boundary  by  a  commission  consisting  of 
three  members.  The  Governor  of  Missouri  was 
to  appoint  one  member,  the  Governor  of  Iowa 
a  second,  and  these  two  commissioners  were  to 
select  the  third  member. ^^^  rpj^^  ^^^^  however, 
included  the  fatal  proviso  that  it  should  not 
take  force  unless  sanctioned  by  the  State  of  Mis- 
souri. A  bill  assenting  to  the  act  was  passed 
by  the  legislature  of  that  State,  but  received  the 
veto  of  John  C.  Edwards  who  had  now  become 
Governor.  So  the  Congressional  legislation 
came  to  naught  and  the  boundary  affair  was  as 
far  from  settlement  as  at  the  beginning  of  the 
administration  of  John  Chambers. 

Down  on  the  border  line  the  unsettled  con- 
dition of  affairs  led  to  no  little  trouble.  The 
county  of  Adair  in  Missouri  and  the  county  of 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  149 

Davis  in  Iowa  overlapped  so  as  to  include  a 
tract  of  land  claimed  by  both  authorities.  Early 
in  the  year  1845  the  Sheriff  of  Adair  County  was 
arrested  by  Iowa  authorities  for  exercising  the 
duties  of  his  office  without  legal  authority  in 
the  bounds  of  Davis  County.  The  Deputy  Sher- 
iff of  Adair  County  was  also  arrested  and 
charged  with  having  seized  in  Davis  County  and 
falsely  imprisoned  Frederick  Acheson,  a  citizen 
of  the  Territory  of  Iowa.  The  Davis  County  Dis- 
trict Court  tried  William  P.  Linder,  the  Deputy 
Sheriff,  and  sentenced  him  to  a  fine  and  ten 
days*  imprisonment  in  the  penitentiary.  The 
trial  of  the  Sheriff,  Preston  Mullinix,  was  con- 
tinued to  the  next  term  of  court,  and  upon  his 
refusal  to  give  his  individual  recognizance  for 
his  appearance  he  was  also  committed  to  prison. 
At  this  stage  of  the  proceedings  Governor 
Chambers  learned  of  the  trouble.  Without 
further  ado  he  pardoned  both  Linder  and  Mul- 
linix and  set  them  at  liberty.  He  then  wrote 
to  Governor  Edwards  of  Missouri,  expressing 
his  regret  at  the  conflict  of  jurisdiction  which 
occasioned  these  prosecutions.  He  reiterated 
his  position  that  the  Territory  had  no  power  to 
adjust  the  dispute  or  to  enter  into  any  agree- 
ment for  a  judicial  settlement.  He  therefore 
urged  the  Missouri  authorities  to  petition  Con- 


150  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

gress  for  permission  to  litigate  the  matter 
either  with  the  Territory  or  directly  with  the 
United  States.  He  also  intimated  that  the 
authorities  of  the  Territory  were  bound  to 
maintain  jurisdiction  over  the  limits  assigned 
to  them  by  the  Federal  government  or  be  con- 
sidered unfaithful  to  their  trust.  He  casually 
remarked  that  he  had  hoped  there  would  be  an 
amicable  and  speedy  adjustment  of  the  dispute 
resulting  from  the  Congressional  act  of  the  pre- 
ceding year  providing  for  a  boundary  commis- 
sion, but  since  that  solution  had  been  rendered 
impossible  by  the  veto  of  the  bill  giving  Mis- 
souri's consent,  he  took  the  liberty  of  proposing 
the  other  mode  of  adjustment.^^^ 

The  attitude  of  John  Chambers  on  the  bound- 
ary question  was  eminently  wise.  He  was  not 
less  tenacious  of  the  rights  of  the  Territory 
than  was  his  predecessor;  nor  was  he  more  in- 
clined to  yield  without  authorization  from  the 
United  States  government  an  inch  of  the  terri- 
tory which  had  been  assigned  to  the  Common- 
wealth under  his  control.  To  be  sure  the  con- 
ditions were  now  entirely  different  from  those 
which  confronted  Governor  Lucas  in  the  winter 
of  1839.  Then  the  crisis  on  the  border  called 
for  immediate  and  decisive  action.  Since  that 
time  the  matter  had  been  taken  up  by  Congress 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  151 

and  the  excitement  on  the  line  had  largely  sub- 
sided in  the  prospect  of  a  settlement  of  the 
question  by  Federal  authorities.  Although  de- 
lay in  Congressional  action  had  led  to  occasional 
recurrence  of  the  difficulties  as  in  the  case  of 
Mullinix  and  Linder,  yet  it  was  to  the  advan- 
tage of  all  parties  to  conciliate  the  border  neigh- 
bors and  prevent  disturbances  and  conflicts  of 
authority  until  an  adjustment  could  be  secured. 

Governor  Chambers's  pardon  of  the  two  of- 
fending officers  was  not  only  a  politic  but  a  most 
just  and  reasonable  action  —  since  individually 
the  men  were  only  performing  what  appeared 
to  them  to  be  the  duties  of  their  office,  and  as 
far  as  the  dispute  was  concerned  nothing  could 
be  gained  by  stirring  up  questions  which  it  was 
out  of  the  power  of  the  State  and  the  Territory 
by  and  between  themselves  to  settle. 

The  judicial  aspects  of  the  dispute  were  more 
clearly  seen  by  Chambers  than  by  the  Missouri 
Governors.  As  a  Territory,  Iowa  could  not 
constitutionally  be  a  party  to  a  suit,  and  an  at- 
tempt at  such  procedure  would  only  have  tend- 
ed to  make  confusion  worse  confounded.  In  the 
course  of  two  years  more  Iowa  became  a  State 
and  was  in  a  position  to  sustain  the  relation  of 
a  party  in  a  suit  before  the  United  States  Su- 
preme Court.     But  now  the  only  solution  of 


152  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

the  difficulty  lay  in  preserving  border  matters 
in  a  state  of  truce  until  Congress  could  be  pre- 
vailed upon  to  take  action. 

Particularly  was  it  desirable  to  avoid  trouble 
over  boundaries  in  view  of  the  fact  that  Iowa 
was  suing  for  admission  to  the  Union.  The 
Constitution  which  had  been  drawn  up  in  Oc- 
tober, 1844,  was  put  into  the  hands  of  Dele- 
gate Dodge  to  present  to  Congress  when  it  con- 
vened in  December.  Meanwhile  it  formed  the 
basis  of  editorial  comment  and  extended  public 
and  private  discussion.  It  was  a  Democratic 
instrument,  but  it  was  not  enthusiastically  re- 
ceived even  by  all  the  Democrats;  and  it  was 
universally  denounced  by  the  Whigs.  Governor 
Chambers,  though  he  had  been  and  still  was  in 
favor  of  State  government,  could  not  reconcile 
himself  to  the  provisions  of  the  instrument.  He 
was  opposed  to  an  elective  judiciary,  and  he  as 
strongly  objected  to  the  restrictions  upon  bank- 
ing and  other  corporations. 

In  Congress  the  Constitution  of  1844  was 
carefully  considered,  and  an  enabling  act  was 
drawn  up  providing  for  the  admission  of  Iowa 
with  that  instrument  as  a  fundamental  law. 
But  in  framing  this  act  Congress  stipulated 
other  boundaries  than  those  proposed  by  the 
Convention.    The  Constitution  as  it  came  from 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  153 

the  Convention  provided  what  were  known  as 
the  Lucas  Boundaries,  by  which  the  State  was 
to  extend  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Missouri 
Eiver.  The  act  of  Congress  designated  the 
Nicollet  Boundaries,  with  a  western  limit  some 
distance  east  of  the  Missouri  River.^^* 

On  March  3,  1845,  the  act  of  Congress  was 
approved,  and  the  news  of  the  provision  con- 
cerning boundaries  reached  the  Territory  a 
few  weeks  before  the  vote  of  the  people  was 
taken  at  the  April  election.  It  had  instant  ef- 
fect. Democrats  who  favored  the  instrument 
itself  were  unwilling  to  countenance  any  act  by 
which  the  State  was  to  be  denied  the  Missouri 
River  as  a  western  limit,  and  some  even  took 
the  stump  against  its  adoption.^^^  On  election 
day  the  Constitution  was  defeated  by  a  con- 
siderable majority. 

In  May,  1845,  the  Seventh  Legislative  As- 
sembly convened.  A  perplexing  situation  was 
before  the  legislators.  The  Constitution  had 
been  rejected  by  the  people.  Ordinarily  that 
would  have  been  the  end  of  the  matter,  and 
further  efforts  towards  Statehood  would  have 
been  made,  if  at  all,  through  a  vote  on  a  new 
constitutional  convention.  This  procedure  was 
recommended  by  Governor  Chambers  in  his 
regular  message  on  May  8.^^^    But  the  peculiar 


154  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

conditions  in  the  case  impelled  the  Democrats, 
who  were  still  tenacious  of  their  Constitution, 
to  employ  other  tactics.  They  contended,  and 
it  was  undoubtedly  true,  that  a  large  influence 
in  bringing  about  the  defeat  of  the  Constitu- 
tion was  the  fact  that  a  considerable  proportion 
of  tlfe  people  considered  that  in  voting  for  the 
Constitution  they  would  also  be  voting  for  the 
conditions  named  by  Congress,  including  the 
change  of  boundaries.  Hence  they  wished  to 
resubmit  to  the  vote  of  the  people  the  Consti- 
tution upon  its  own  merits  or  defects  and  with- 
out consideration  of  Congressional  conditions. 
Whether  or  not  the  vote  in  April  did  include 
both  the  Constitution  and  the  Congressional 
conditions  is  perhaps  an  open  question.  The 
Constitution  itself  provided  that  it  should  be 
submitted  to  the  people  at  the  April  election 
together  with  any  conditions  which  might  be 
made  by  Congress.^*^*  The  enabling  act  of  Con- 
gress, approved  March  3,  1845,  made  it  an  es- 
sential condition  of  the  admission  of  Iowa  into 
the  Union  that  so  much  of  the  act  as  applied  to 
Iowa  be  assented  to  '*by  a  majority  of  the 
qualified  electors  at  their  township  elections,  in 
the  manner  and  at  the  time  prescribed ''  in  the 
Constitution  itself.^^^  Only  upon  the  under- 
standing  that   these   provisions   contemplated 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES     155 

separate  ballots  on  Constitution  and  conditions 
could  the  people  ratify  the  Constitution  as 
drawn  up  and  reject  the  Congressional  condi- 
tions containing  the  obnoxious  boundaries.  But 
no  separate  ballot  was  provided,  and  a  vast 
majority  undoubtedly  understood  that  the  two 
questions  were  combined  in  a  single  vote. 

With  either  understanding  as  to  how  much 
was  included  in  the  vote,  a  new  enabling  act 
was  necessitated  by  the  result.  For,  if  the  vote 
only  applied  to  the  Constitution  it  was  now  too 
late  to  accept  the  Congressional  conditions  since 
the  act  declared  it  a  '^fundamental  condition  of 
the  admission  of  said  State''  that  they  take 
such  vote  **at  the  time'*  prescribed  for  voting 
on  the  Constitution.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
vote  in  April  did  include  the  Congressional  con- 
ditions, it  meant  their  rejection,  and  Congress 
must  make  a  new  enactment  for  their  admission. 

In  view  of  this  condition.  Chambers  felt  that 
the  thing  to  do  was  to  allow  the  people  to  vote 
on  the  calling  of  a  new  convention.  But  the 
Democratic  legislature,  making  the  most  of  the 
argument  that  the  conditions  in  April  had  pre- 
vented a  fair  judgment  on  the  Constitution, 
preferred  to  resubmit  the  original  instrument 
to  the  vote  of  the  people  and  run  the  chances 
of  being  able  to  persuade  Congress  to  withdraw 


156  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

from  its  position  and  pass  a  satisfactory  en- 
abling act.  So,  disregarding  the  advice  of 
Governor  Chambers  to  let  go  the  old  Constitu- 
tion with  the  complications  that  adhered  to  it 
and  take  measures  for  the  formation  of  a  new 
body  of  law,  the  Legislative  Assembly  passed 
an  act  in  May,  1845,  to  resubmit  to  the  voters  at 
the  August  election  the  Constitution  of  1844  in 
the  same  form  in  which  it  came  from  the  Con- 
vention.^^^ 

A  minority  of  more  than  one  third  of  the 
House  of  Eepresentatives  signed  a  formal  pro- 
test against  the  act,  claiming  that  the  legisla- 
ture had  no  power  to  resubmit  the  question  and 
maintaining  that  the  Constitution  had  already 
been  deliberately  and  with  a  clear  understand- 
ing rejected  at  the  polls,  and  protesting  against 
a  new  vote  on  so  faulty  a  document.^^^  The  act 
received  the  veto  of  Governor  Chambers.  Al- 
though he  had  not  been  and  was  not  now  op- 
posed to  Statehood,  nevertheless  he  looked  upon 
the  Constitution  of  1844  as  a  bad  instrument, 
and  this  probably  greatly  influenced  his  opposi- 
tion to  its  second  appearance  before  the  people. 
But  he  said  nothing  of  his  objections  to  the  Con- 
stitution itself  in  his  veto  message.  He  admit- 
ted that  the  boundary  question  had  exerted  an 
influence  upon  the  vote  in  April,  and  he  ac- 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  157 

knowledged  the  right  of  the  legislators  to  pro- 
vide for  a  resubmission. 

His  message  dealt  largely  with  technical 
points  in  the  situation.  He  pointed  out  certain 
respects  in  which  the  act  would  produce  con- 
fusion and  conflict  of  legislation  between  the 
act  itself,  the  Constitution,  and  the  act  of  Con- 
gress—  if  that  were  still  in  effect.  He  con- 
tended that  at  the  April  election  separate  bal- 
lots should  have  been  used ;  and  he  was  opposed 
to  the  resubmission  now  of  the  Constitution 
without  the  provision  for  a  separate  vote  at 
the  same  time  on  the  conditions.  The  weakness 
of  his  position  here  was  that  admission  could 
not  be  secured  by  ratifying  the  Constitution 
and  rejecting  the  conditions,  and  if  both  were 
ratified  the  two  votes  would  produce  conflict  — 
particularly  with  regard  to  boundaries. 

He  pointed  out  the  fact  that  the  Constitution 
itself  declared  that  the  first  general  election 
should  occur  on  the  first  Monday  in  August 
next  after  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  by 
the  people,  while  the  act  which  he  was  vetoing 
decreed  that  ^*no  election  of  State  officers  shall 
be  held  under  said  Constitution,  if  ratified  at 
said  election,  until  after  the  admission  of  the 
State  of  Iowa  is  complete''.  Since  admission 
would  not  be  complete  until  an  indefinite  period 


158  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

of  time  after  ratification,  this  provision  of  the 
act  really  amounted  to  an  alteration  of  the  Con- 
stitution —  a  thing  which  Chambers  declared  to 
be  outside  the  power  of  the  Legislative  Assem- 
bly. Other  discrepancies  were  mentioned,  and 
he  withheld  his  approval  believing  that  in  the 
event  of  a  successful  vote  on  the  Constitution 
the  act  would  only  result  in  confusion.^^^ 

It  is  interesting  to  note  in  connection  with 
this  message,  an  assertion  made  many  years 
later  by  William  Penn  Clarke,  a  young  Whig 
friend  of  the  Governor  who  afterwards  was 
somewhat  prominent  in  the  State.  He  states 
that  Chambers,  who  was  in  ill  health  at  this 
time,  came  to  him  on  the  day  previous  to  the 
delivery  of  the  message  and  said  he  was  in 
great  pain  and  could  not  write.  He  handed 
Clarke  some  notes  upon  the  subject  and  asked 
him  if  he  would  put  the  matter  in  shape.  Clarke 
consented  and  wrote  out  the  message.  The  next 
morning  Chambers  read  it  over,  signed  it,  and 
sent  it  to  the  legislature.^^^ 

Among  the  Democratic  supporters  of  the 
Constitution  of  1844,  this  veto  produced  intense 
indignation  and  criticism,  and  their  majority 
in  the  legislature  was  sufficiently  large  to  pass 
it  over  his  official  disapproval.  So  the  much 
discussed  document  went  once  more  to  the  polls, 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES     159 

this  time  to  be  judged  purely  upon  its  own  in- 
trinsic worth.  The  election  occurred  on  August 
4,  1845,  and  although  the  majority  in  favor  of 
its  rejection  was  smaller  than  in  April,  yet  the 
people  of  the  Territory  cast  a  suflScient  number 
of  votes  to  consign  the  Constitution  of  1844  to 
the  limbo  of  untried  charter s.^^®  Thus  the  com- 
plications and  the  bickerings  with  Congress  for 
a  satisfactory  enabling  act,  which  would  have 
resulted  from  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution, 
and  the  prospect  of  which  Chambers  had  em- 
phasized in  vetoing  the  bill  for  resubmission, 
were  obviated  only  by  the  failure  of  the  instru- 
ment to  receive  a  majority  vote.  And  through 
the  channel  which  Chambers  had  advised  —  the 
calling  of  a  new  convention  —  Statehood  was 
ultimately  accomplished. 

In  March  of  the  year  1845  James  K.  Polk 
had  come  into  possession  of  the  White  House; 
yet  Chambers,  although  momentarily  expect- 
ing dismissal,  was  undisturbed  in  his  office. 
The  expiration  of  the  term  of  Augustus  Caesar 
Dodge  as  Delegate  to  Congress  from  the  Terri- 
tory brought  on  in  the  summer  of  this  year  a 
campaign  in  which  John  Chambers  and  Gen- 
eral James  Wilson  of  Dubuque  were  promi- 
nently named  by  the  Whigs  as  possible  candi- 
dates to  oppose  Dodge  for  reelection.^*  ^     But 


160  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

it  seems  to  have  been  the  general  impression, 
and  probably  with  truth,  that  neither  of  these 
gentlemen  would  consent  to  be  a  candidate. 
Chambers  at  least  was  physically  ill-prepared 
for  such  a  campaign.  Ealph  P.  Lowe,  after- 
wards Governor  of  the  State,  was  chosen  as  the 
candidate  of  the  Whigs  and  conducted  a  some- 
what vigorous  campaign,  but  he  was  defeated 
by  Dodge  at  the  election  in  August.^* ^ 

Back  in  Kentucky  the  old  friends  of  Cham- 
bers marvelled  as  month  after  month  he  re- 
tained his  office.  Some  even  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  he  had  turned  Democrat  ;^^^  but 
no  such  thought  was  entertained  by  those  who 
knew  him  well.  Indeed,  if  there  was  any  part 
of  his  administration  in  which  his  Whig  poli- 
tics entered  into  his  performance  of  duties  it 
was  at  the  time  of  his  veto  of  the  act  for  resub- 
mission of  the  Constitution,  two  months  after 
the  change  of  administration. 

In  November,  1845,  James  Clarke,  a  Demo- 
cratic editor  of  Burlington  who  had  been  Sec- 
retary of  the  Territory  under  Governor  Lucas, 
was  appointed  to  succeed  Chambers  as  Gover- 
nor.31* 

It  was  well  that  the  busy  cares  of  the  gover- 
norship were  taken  from  the  shoulders  of  John 
Chambers  for  his  health  was  suffering  greatly. 


GOVERNMENT  AND  BOUNDARIES  161 

On  October  29,  he  wrote  to  William  Penn 
Clarke : —  ^  *  Since  I  saw  you  I  have  been  on  the 
confines  of  eternity,  and  am  so  much  reduced 
that  ....  you  would  scarcely  know  me. 
Yet  under  all  this  suffering,  I  have  performed 
my  every  official  duty  promptly,  sometimes  ly- 
ing flat  on  my  back,  dictating  to  my  private  sec- 
retary, and  again  scrawling  illegibly  for  him  to 
copy.''  He  betook  himself  to  the  farm  at 
Grouseland,  making  trips  to  town  two  or  three 
times  a  week  to  transact  business.  **You 
would  be  amused",  he  wrote,  **to  see  me  feed- 
ing the  pigs,  turkeys,  etc.,  and  the  efforts  I 
make  to  work."^'**  Chambers  was  at  a  loss  to 
understand  his  retention  in  office  by  Polk;  and 
after  waiting  in  vain  for  a  promise  of  leave  of 
absence  from  the  duties  of  Indian  Affairs,  he 
finally  determined  that  his  health  necessitated 
his  going  to  Kentucky  in  November  whether 
removed  from  office  or  not.^*®  So  he  left  his 
office  for  his  first  vacation  in  three  years  and 
visited  once  more  the  town  of  Washington,  Ken- 
tucky. During  his  absence  the  new  Governor 
took  office  and  the  active  political  life  of  John 
Chambers  was  at  an  end.*^^ 


11 


XIV 

Indian  Affairs 

It  was  a  vast  Territory  that  lay  subject  to  the 
supervision  of  John  Chambers  in  1841.  Besides 
the  land  that  now  constitutes  the  State  of  Iowa 
it  comprised  the  eastern  half  of  the  present 
States  of  North  and  South  Dakota  and  the 
larger  portion  of  what  is  now  Minnesota.  Only 
the  eastern  fringe  was  then  settled  by  whites. 
On  the  broad  prairies  to  the  west  and  north 
the  Indian  tribes  fished  and  hunted,  waged  war 
and  drank  themselves  into  degeneracy  upon 
the  white  man's  whiskey.^^^  It  was  now  a  sadly 
depleted  race  that  clung  forlornly  to  the  fast 
receding  edge  of  the  frontier. 

In  the  days  of  their  fathers  the  fair  lands 
that  lay  between  the  two  great  rivers  in  the 
heart  of  the  continent  had  been  the  meeting 
ground  of  many  tribes.  From  the  east  along 
the  Great  Lakes  and  the  Ohio  came  the  various 
tribes  of  the  powerful  Algonquin  family  —  a 
nomadic  migration  differing  from  the  later 
movement  of  the  whites  in  that  it  left  no  broad- 

162 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  163 

scarred  trail  in  its  wake.  The  moccasined  foot 
of  the  Indian  scarcely  stirred  the  dead  leaves 
upon  the  ground  where  the  plow  shares  of  the 
white  man,  coming  after,  turned  acres  of  grass 
roots  to  the  sun.  The  virgin  plains  where  they 
hunted  the  buffalo  and  the  forests  through 
whose  quiet  recesses  they  slipped  noiselessly  in 
search  of  game,  they  left  as  unchanged  as  the 
streams  whose  waters  stilled  themselves  after 
the  silent  dip  of  the  paddle  or  the  swift  spear 
thrust  of  the  red-skinned  fisher. 

On  the  banks  of  these  same  streams  there 
went  up  often  the  hideous  war  cry.  For  the 
Algonquins  from  the  East  did  not  alone  covet 
the  watered  plains  of  the  Mississippi  Valley. 
From  the  West  and  Northwest,  down  the  broad 
valleys  of  the  Platte  and  the  Missouri,  came  the 
tribes  of  another  great  family  of  Indians  —  the 
warlike  Dakotahs.  Among  them  were  numbered 
the  Sioux,  the  loways,  the  Otoes,  the  Omahas, 
and  the  Winnebagoes.  In  the  valley  of  the 
upper  Mississippi  these  people  for  succeeding 
generations  waged  bloody  wars  with  the  Sacs 
and  Foxes,  the  Pottawattamies  and  other  Al- 
gonquin tribes. 

Of  all  these  Indians  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  made 
the  greatest  impress  upon  the  history  of  Iowa 
so  far  as  that  history  concerns  the  white  man. 


164  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

They  came  from  the  vicinity  of  the  Great  Lakes, 
and  before  reaching  the  Mississippi  had  formed 
a  close  alliance.  Upon  the  Mississippi  and 
Des  Moines  rivers  they  found  the  powerful 
loways  and  subjugated  them.  Turning  to  the 
north  they  came  upon  the  Sioux  whom  they  en- 
gaged in  ceaseless  and  bitter  strife.  These  con- 
tests became  so  furious  that  in  1825  the  United 
States  government  negotiated  a  treaty  by  which 
a  boundary  line  was  placed  between  the  com- 
batants.^^ ^  It  began  where  the  Upper  Iowa 
Eiver  empties  into  the  Mississippi  and  proceed- 
ing along  river  channels  and  across  prairies 
ended  at  the  juncture  of  the  Big  Sioux  and 
Missouri  rivers.  North  of  this  line  the  Sioux 
were  to  remain,  and  south  of  it  the  Sacs  and 
Foxes.  Five  years  later  it  became  necessary  to 
set  up  on  either  side  of  this  line  a  neutral  strip 
twenty  miles  in  width.^^o  rp^  ^^-g  ;N'eutral 
Ground  some  years  afterward,  the  Winneba- 
goes  from  east  of  the  Mississippi  reluctantly 
agreed  to  remove.^^^ 

The  principal  town  of  the  Sacs  in  the  early 
days  was  on  the  east  side  of  the  Mississippi 
near  the  mouth  of  the  Eock  Eiver.  Here  lived 
the  warlike  Black  Hawk;  and  when  in  accord- 
ance with  treaty  agreements,  which  Black  Hawk 
claimed  were  not  valid,  the  United  States  gov- 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  165 

emment  demanded  the  removal  of  the  Indians 
from  the  east  to  the  west  side  of  the  river  he 
demurred.  Keokuk,  one  of  the  prominent  chiefs 
of  the  Sacs,  located  on  the  Iowa  River  and  tried 
to  persuade  Black  Hawk  and  his  men  to  join 
him.  Black  Hawk,  however,  looked  upon  such 
withdrawal  as  cowardice,  and  he  clung  to  his 
ancient  haunts  until  he  was  surrounded  by  white 
settlers.  Finally  he  was  persuaded  by  troops  to 
move  across  the  river,  but  in  1832  he  returned 
and  the  contest  known  as  the  Black  Hawk  War 
was  precipitated.322 

The  warring  Indians  in  that  contest  com- 
prised a  large  portion  of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes,  re- 
enforced  by  several  hundred  Winnebagoes. 
Many  of  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  restrained  by  the 
influence  of  Keokuk,  remained  quietly  at  home 
on  the  banks  of  the  Iowa  River  in  spite  of  the 
reproaches  and  taunts  of  the  followers  of  Black 
Hawk.  In  a  few  short  months  the  Indians  were 
vanquished  with  the  result  that  the  confedera- 
ted tribes  of  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  were  com- 
pelled to  cede  to  the  United  States  government 
a  strip  of  land  extending  about  fifty  miles  west 
from  the  Mississippi  River,  with  a  reservation 
along  the  Iowa  River  for  the  benefit  of 
Keokuk.323 

Upon  the  land  vacated  by  this  treaty  of  Sep- 


166  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

tember  12,  1832,  there  began  the  first  legal 
white  settlement  of  what  is  now  Iowa.  The 
defeated  Black  Hawk  was  supplanted  in  tribal 
leadership  by  the  more  peaceful  Keokuk.  After 
a  somewhat  neglected  old  age  the  old  warrior 
died,  but  his  sons  and  his  followers  nursed  an 
increasing  bitterness  against  Keokuk  and  his 
administration.^24  jj^  ;j^g3g  Keokuk's  reserva- 
tion on  the  Iowa  Eiver  was  given  up,^25  ^j^^  ^j^ 
the  following  year  an  additional  slice  of  terri- 
tory west  of  the  Black  Hawk  Purchase  was 
ceded  to  the  United  States.^ ^e  rpj^^  Sacs  and 
Foxes  moved  westward  and  settled  upon  the 
Des  Moines  Eiver  and  here  we  find  them  when, 
in  1838,  the  Territory  of  Iowa  was  organized. 
There  were,  during  the  Territorial  period, 
two  principal  Indian  agencies  within  the  limits 
of  Iowa.  One  was  the  Sac  and  Fox  Agency  on 
the  site  of  the  present  town  of  Agency  City  in 
Wapello  County.  Here  General  Joseph  M. 
Street  ^^'^  was  Agent  until  his  death  in  1840, 
when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son-in-law,  John 
Beach.  The  other  was  the  Sioux  Agency  on  the 
St.  Peters  Eiver  (now  the  Minnesota)  near  its 
juncture  with  the  Mississippi.  The  Indian 
Agent  at  this  place  during  the  first  years  of 
the  Territory  was  Major  Lawrence  Talia- 
ferro,^^^  who  having  resigned  was  followed  in 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  167 

1840  by  Amos  J.  Bruce.  Besides  these  posts 
there  was  a  sub-agency  near  Council  Bluffs 
where  the  Pottawattamies  were  located  ;^2^  and 
about  1840  there  seems  to  have  been  a  sub- 
agency  founded  on  the  headwaters  of  Turkey 
River,  for  the  benefit  of  the  Winnebagoes  who 
had  moved  to  the  Neutral  Ground.^^^ 

With  each  agency  there  were  trading  posts, 
and  no  treatment  of  Indian  affairs  would  be 
complete  or  understandable  without  a  consid- 
eration of  these  licensed  trading  companies. 
For  through  the  sale  of  goods  to  the  Indians 
they  gained  an  ascendancy  over  the  red  inhab- 
itants that  materially  affected  every  attempt  at 
negotiation  between  the  United  States  govern- 
ment and  the  Indian  tribes. 

Three  important  establishments  were  con- 
nected with  the  Sac  and  Fox  Agency.  Pierre 
Chouteau  Jr.  and  Company,  of  St.  Louis,^^^ 
a  well  known  agency  of  the  American  Fur  Com- 
pany, was  represented  at  various  times  by 
Chouteau's  son-in-law.  Major  Sandford,  by 
William  Phelps,  and  by  the  latter 's  brother,  S. 
S.  Phelps.  Another  firm  was  that  of  W.  G.  and 
G.  W.  Ewing  who  had  removed  to  the  Territory 
from  a  profitable  trade  in  Indiana.^^^  Both  of 
these  posts  were  on  the  site  of  the  present  town 
of  Ottumwa.    A  third  concern  was  operated  by 


168  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

J.  P.  Eddy  who,  having  been  licensed  in  1840, 
located  a  trading  post  a  few  miles  up  the  river 
at  a  point  where  the  town  of  Eddyville  now 
stands.^^^ 

These  traders  imported  to  the  Indian  country- 
goods  of  all  descriptions  and  sold  them,  as  a 
rule,  upon  credit.  When  the  time  came  each 
year  for  the  payment  of  annuities  the  companies 
were  the  creditors  of  the  Indians  to  the  extent 
of  thousand  of  dollars,  and  their  representatives 
were  generally  present  at  every  such  occurrence 
to  engulf  the  larger  proportion  of  the  payment 
and  to  secure  an  early  chance  at  the  sum  which 
remained. 

When  Governor  Lucas  came  into  office  six 
years  had  elapsed  since  the  close  of  the  Black 
Hawk  War.  Black  Hawk  himself  was  dead, 
but  the  factional  spirit  among  the  Sacs  and 
Foxes  was  as  strong  as  ever.  The  followers  of 
the  departed  warrior  rallied  about  his  sons  and 
a  chief  named  Hardfish,  and  bitter  was  the  an- 
tipathy between  the  band  of  Hardfish  and  the 
band  of  Keokuk.  Particularly  in  the  payment 
of  government  annuities  was  trouble  wont  to 
rise.  It  had  been  the  custom  to  pay  the  amounts 
due  the  Indians  to  Keokuk  and  the  more  promi- 
nent chiefs;  and  upon  them  devolved  the  set- 
tling of  debts  to  traders  and  the  further  distri- 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  169 

bution  of  the  remainder  among  the  members  of 
the  two  tribes. 

Keokuk  seems  to  have  nmnbered  among  his 
weaknesses  a  fondness  for  money;  and  it  was 
perhaps  not  without  reason  that  Hardfish  and 
his  followers  charged  him  with  fraud  and  col- 
lusion with  the  traders.  In  January,  1840,  about 
fifty  Indians  of  Hardfish  *s  band  came  to  Bur- 
lington for  a  council  with  Governor  Lucas.^^* 
They  protested  that  they  did  not  know  what  be- 
came of  the  annuities  paid  to  the  **  money 
chiefs** —  as  they  called  Keokuk,  Wapello, 
Appanoose,  Poweshiek,  and  the  others  to  whom 
pajnnents  were  made  —  and  they  urged  that 
the  money  be  paid  directly  to  the  heads  of 
families.  They  appear  to  have  even  sought  to 
renounce  Keokuk  as  chief  and  to  adhere  only  to 
the  chiefs  of  their  own  band.  Lucas  tried  to 
pacify  them  and  told  them  that  they  must  set- 
tle the  matter  of  their  chiefs  and  the  payment 
of  annuities  among  themselves.  It  is  evident 
throughout  the  administration  of  Governor  Lu- 
cas that  his  sympathies  were  with  the  band  led 
by  Hardfish. 

During  the  months  that  followed  lines  grew 
tighter  between  the  two  divisions.  Each  band 
held  councils,  and  two  papers  were  drawn  up 
and  signed  —  one  by  the  Indians  of  the  upper 


170  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

village  favoring  payment  to  the  heads  of  fami- 
lies, and  one  by  Keokuk's  band  urging  the  dis- 
tribution of  annuities  to  the  chiefs  as  before.^^^ 

Early  in  the  summer  of  1840  General  Street, 
who  had  made  a  most  excellent  record  as  Indian 
Agent,  died  and  was  succeeded  by  John  Beach. 
In  July,  at  the  extra  session,  the  Legislative 
Assembly  passed  a  memorial  asking  that  the 
payments  be  made  to  the  heads  of  families  or 
to  persons  designated  by  the  majority  of  the 
nation,  but  before  it  reached  Washington,  an 
order  had  been  issued  under  date  of  August  18, 
1840,  directing  that  the  payments  be  made  to 
the  chiefs.^ ^^ 

The  council  for  the  payment  of  the  annuities 
for  1840  occurred  at  the  Sac  and  Fox  Agency 
House  on  September  28th.  Governor  Lucas  at- 
tended in  person  and  found  the  traders  of  the 
American  Fur  Company  in  abundant  evidence. 
From  St.  Louis,  Pierre  Chouteau  Jr.,  himself, 
and  Messrs.  Sandford  and  Mitchell  were  in  at- 
tendance. The  two  Davenports  and  Antoine 
LeClaire  from  near  Eock  Island,  S.  S.  Phelps  of 
Oquawka,  Illinois,  and  his  brother  William 
Phelps  of  the  Indian  Agency  were  all  there  to 
watch  carefully  the  trading  interests.^^^  The 
council  was  not  a  happy  one.  The  Indians  re- 
fused to  come  to  a  reconciliation,  and  Beach 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  171 

finally  reported  that  no  agreement  could  be 
made  with  the  two  parties  as  to  the  method  of 
receiving  and  distributing  annuities ;  indeed,  he 
favored  sending  away  the  money,  which  was  in 
paper,  to  be  returned  later  in  specie  when  the 
Indians  should  have  become  reconciled.^^^ 

Thus  the  outcome  was  that  the  payment  was 
deferred.  Lucas  fully  believed  that  Beach  was 
acting  in  conjunction  with  the  American  Fur 
Company,  and  when  his  later  attempts  to  have 
the  Agent  make  the  payment  proved  futile,  he 
recommended  his  removal  from  the  Agency.^  ^^ 
Beach  on  the  other  hand  wrote  to  the  Commis- 
sioner of  Indian  Affairs  at  Washington,  stating 
his  reasons  for  non-payment  and  complaining 
that  Lucas  had  been  pursuing  a  course  which 
tended  to  destroy  the  official  influence  of  the 
Agent  with  the  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  and  to 
sow  discord  among  them.^*^  In  the  midst  of 
this  deadlock  Governor  Chambers  came  into  of- 
fice as  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs. 

Five  days  after  his  arrival  at  Burlington, 
Chambers  wrote  to  John  Bell,  Secretary  of 
War,  in  regard  to  Indian  matters.^*^  He  had  as 
yet  been  able  to  gather  very  little  information 
concerning  the  status  of  these  negotiations  be- 
cause of  the  absence  of  his  predecessor;  but 
from  an  examination  of  copies  of  a  correspond- 


^72  •        JOHN  CHAMBERS 

ence  between  Captain  Beach  and  Major  Pilcher 
(the  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  at  St. 
Louis)  relating  to  the  suspended  payment  of 
annuities,  he  inclined  to  the  belief  that  they 
should  be  paid  to  the  heads  of  families.  At  all 
events  he  expressed  the  hope  that,  in  view  of 
rumors  of  an  agreement  among  the  Indians,  the 
order  suspending  payment  might  be  immediate- 
ly withdrawn. 

A  week  later  he  wrote  at  some  length  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  United  States  Commissioner 
of  Indian  Affairs.^^^  He  had  now  received  word 
from  Beach  in  explanation  of  the  dissensions 
among  the  Indians.  He  appears  to  have  differed 
from  Beach  in  attitude  toward  the  opposing 
chiefs.  He  commented  upon  the  fact  that  Keo- 
kuk had  become  intemperate  and  had  lost  the 
confidence  of  a  considerable  majority  of  the 
Indians,  and  he  expressed  the  belief  that  Hard- 
fish  had  been  sincere  in  desiring  to  bring  about 
an  equitable  distribution  of  the  annuities.  How- 
ever, he  believed  that  it  was  not  necessary  that 
the  government  or  its  officers  take  the  part  of 
either  division,  and  that  the  Indians  would  prob- 
ably now  agree  that  each  party  should  receive 
a  just  proportion  in  the  manner  that  it  saw  fit. 

It  was  about  the  middle  of  June  that  Gover- 
nor Chambers  hired  a  carriage  and  drove  across 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS       .  173 

country  for  his  first  visit  to  tlie  Indians  on  tlie 
Des  Moines  River.^^^  He  made  the  acquaintance 
of  his  red  skinned  wards  and  of  the  Indian 
agent.  Doubtless  they  sat  down  at  the  Agency 
House  and  discussed  at  length  the  dissensions 
among  the  Indians  and  payment  of  their  long 
delayed  dues.  In  July,  Beach  wrote  him  a  let- 
ter full  of  good  news.^**  On  the  twenty-third 
of  the  month,  the  chiefs  and  warriors  of  both 
parties  had  come  together  at  the  Agency  House. 
In  solemn  conclave  the  chiefs  tried  to  make  some 
arrangement  for  a  division  of  the  money  but 
in  vain.  Then  the  aged  Pashepaho,  second  in 
rank  to  Hardfish,  conceived  a  plan.  He  pro- 
posed, since  the  chiefs  could  not  agree,  to  leave 
it  to  the  braves  and  abide  by  their  decision.  So 
the  braves  withdrew  and  argued  the  matter,  but 
returned  with  the  statement  that  the  followers 
of  Hardfish  wanted  eighteen  thousand  dollars 
while  Keokuk's  braves  would  not  agree  to  give 
more  than  fourteen  thousand  dollars.  Where- 
upon Agent  Beach  who,  fortunately  for  the  oc- 
casion, had  been  born  in  Massachusetts,  sug- 
gested the  Yankee  expediency  of  splitting  the 
difference.  So  it  was  agreed  that  out  of  the 
entire  sum  due,  which  amounted  to  something 
over  forty  thousand  dollars,  the  band  of  Hard- 
fish should  receive  sixteen  thousand  while  the 


174  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

remainder  should  go  to  Keokuk  and  his  follow- 
ers at  the  lower  village.  The  opposing  chiefs 
then  shook  hands  and  signed  the  agreement. 
Hardfish  was  absent  because  of  sickness  but 
among  the  signatures  were  those  of  his  brother, 
of  Pashepaho,  and  of  the  two  sons  of  Black 
Hawk. 

Thus  the  Indians  had  removed  the  greatest 
obstacle  to  the  payment  of  their  dues.  Cham- 
bers at  once  wrote  to  Washington  urging  that 
the  government  immediately  make  arrange- 
ments for  the  settlement  of  the  affair.  He  re- 
ceived before  long  instructions  to  combine  the 
payment  of  the  annuities  of  both  1840  and  1841 
in  one  negotiation  and  was  further  informed 
that  T.  Hartley  Crawford  and  Governor  J.  D. 
Doty  of  Wisconsin  had  been  appointed  to  act 
with  him  as  commissioners  to  arrange  with  the 
Sacs  and  Foxes  for  a  cession  of  their  land.^^^ 

Chambers  made  arrangements  for  the  pres- 
ence of  a  military  force  at  the  Agency  to  pre- 
vent intrusion  upon  the  Indian  lands  and  to 
preserve  order  during  the  negotiations.  He 
also  provided  for  the  exclusion  of  white  traders 
and  others  from  the  council  in  order  to  get  the 
unbiased  assent  of  the  Indians.  The  assembly 
of  Commissioners  and  Indians  occurred  in  Oc- 
tober.   The  payment  of  the  annuities  was  made 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  375 

—  first  $41,000  for  the  year  1840,  paid  accord- 
ing to  the  agreement  of  July ;  and  an  equal  sum 
for  the  year  1841,  paid  to  the  heads  of  fami- 
lies.^^^  Then  they  proceeded  to  negotiate  for 
the  sale  of  land.^*^  Mr.  Crawford,  United 
States  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs,  made 
the  proposal  that  they  cede  to  the  government 
all  the  lands  claimed  by  them  within  the  Terri- 
tory of  Iowa.  In  return  the  government  would 
give  them  one  million  dollars  and  money  enough 
to  pay  their  debts,  would  locate  them  on  lands 
at  the  headwaters  of  the  Des  Moines  River  and 
west  of  the  Blue  Earth  River,  and  would  build 
for  them  there,  out  of  the  million  dollars,  a 
large  council  house,  mills,  blacksmith  shops, 
school-houses,  and  a  house  for  each  family. 

Chambers  followed,  approving  what  had  been 
said  and  warning  the  Indians  against  the  extor- 
tions of  the  traders  and  against  the  unscrupu- 
lous whiskey  sellers  who  infested  the  border 
line.  The  Indians  listened  quietly  then  coun- 
selled together.  They  asked  for  further  ex- 
planation of  the  terms  and  finally  with  one  ac- 
cord began  to  find  fault  with  the  proposed 
location  to  the  northward.  It  was  poor  land  — 
they  could  not  subsist  there,  and  they  did  not 
want  to  leave  anyway.  Keokuk  had  never  heard 
so  hard  a  proposal:  the  new  location  was  no 


176  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

good;  and,  moreover,  he  had  always  been  op- 
posed to  school-houses. 

Thus  ended  an  unfruitful  negotiation.  The 
receipt  of  double  annuities  was  followed  by  a 
debauch  such  as  the  Indians  had  never  known 
before.  A  small  portion  of  their  debts  were 
paid,  but  the  two  past  years  had  plunged  them 
into  obligations  amounting  to  nearly  half  a  mil- 
lion dollars  and  with  their  annuities  gone  and 
the  cloud  of  debt  still  hovering  over  them  they 
soon  were  in  as  destitute  a  condition  as  before. 

By  this  time  Governor  Chambers  had  seen 
enough  of  the  Indians  to  realize  some  of  the 
evils  practiced  upon  them  by  the  whites.  Two 
things  in  particular  impressed  him  with  the 
need  of  reform.  One  was  the  sale  of  liquor  to 
the  Indians  by  white  men  along  the  border  line. 
The  other  object  of  his  denunciation  was  the 
system  by  which  private  trading  companies, 
licensed  by  the  government,  sold  to  the  child- 
like natives  at  enormous  profits  goods  often 
useless  to  them,  and  by  reason  of  their  intimate 
relationship  acquired  a  power  over  the  Indians 
that  was  frequently  used  to  circumvent  the 
plans  of  the  government  which  had  licensed 
them. 

Chambers  returned  to  Burlington  after  the 
failure  to  consummate  the  treaty  in  1841  great- 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  177 

ly  disappointed.  To  the  Commissioner  at 
Washington  he  penned  an  emphatic  arraign- 
ment of  the  system  of  Indian  trade  and  inter- 
course.^*® He  urged  that  the  practice  of  issu- 
ing licenses  to  traders  be  abolished,  and  that 
government  agents  be  appointed  to  supply  the 
Indians  with  goods  at  a  reasonable  price. 

The  regulation  of  trade  was  a  matter  for  the 
Federal  government  to  remedy;  but  the  sup- 
pression of  the  illegitimate  sale  of  whiskey 
could  be  reached  by  Territorial  action,  and 
when  the  legislative  Assembly  met  in  December 
1841  the  Governor  depicted  to  the  lawmakers 
the  degradation  and  destruction  that  the  in- 
famous practice  was  producing  among  a  people 
whose  indolent  habits  and  aversion  to  labor 
made  them  peculiarly  fond  of  artificial  excite- 
ment. *  *  Humanity  shudders  and  religion  weeps 
over  the  cruel  and  unrelenting  destruction  of  a 
people  so  interesting,  by  means  so  dastardly 
and  brutal,  that  the  use  of  the  rifle  and  the 
sword,  even  in  time  of  profound  peace  with 
them,  would  be  comparatively  merciful. '  *  ^** 
But  his  recommendations  for  an  amendment 
making  efficient  the  existing  laws  on  the  sub- 
ject fell  upon  stony  ground. 

Among  the  Indian  villages  in  the  winter  of 
1841-42,  debt  and  poverty  were  working  a 
12 


178  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

change  of  heart.  One  day  in  February,  Keo- 
kuk, Appanoose,  and  Wapello  came  to  the 
Agency  House  and  told  Captain  Beach  that 
they  desired  to  cede  a  part  of  their  land  and  so 
pay  off  their  debts.^^^  They  added  that  it  would 
please  them  to  be  invited  to  Washington  to  see 
the  Great  Father  and  there  have  a  treaty  coun- 
cil. And  the  next  day  Hardfish  came  also  to 
the  Agent  and  expressed  his  concurrence  with 
the  plan.  Chambers  reported  the  incident  to 
Commissioner  Crawford. ^^^  He  thought  the 
plan  was  instigated  by  the  traders  to  get  the 
money  paid  at  Washington,  and  he  remarked 
that  they  had  been  stirring  up  feeling  against 
him.  Evidently  by  his  exclusion  of  the  traders 
from  the  late  negotiations,  the  new  Governor 
had  not  ingratiated  himself  with  these  captains 
of  commerce.  It  seemed  not  improbable  to 
Chambers,  moreover,  that  the  Indians  would 
not  only  cede  a  part  but  all  of  their  land  in 
Iowa,  providing  they  were  sent  to  the  Missouri 
Eiver  with  the  friendly  Pottawattamies. 

In  May,  after  returning  from  a  visit  to  Ken- 
tucky, the  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  re- 
ported to  Commissioner  Crawford  a  statement 
of  the  debts  due  to  the  three  licensed  trading 
companies  from  the  Sac  and  Fox  Indians.^'^^ 
Altogether  the  amount  was  over  two  hundred 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  179 

thousand  dollars.  It  is  scarcely  to  be  wondered 
at  that  the  Indians  contemplated  a  sale  of  their 
lands.  During  the  summer  of  1842  the  Indian 
border  line  was  a. scene  of  turbulence.  The  In- 
dians were  restless;  whites  expelled  from  the 
red  men's  country  were  vindictive.  The  whiskey 
sellers  were  active  and  their  increasing  num- 
bers contained  many  desperadoes  of  the  most 
dangerous  type.  An  old  trading  house,  aban- 
doned by  Pierre  Chouteau  Jr.  and  Company, 
was  burned  to  the  ground.  The  Agent  and  the 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  were  shot  in 
effigy,  and  one  Smith,  a  troublesome  fellow  who 
had  been  christened  Jeremiah  by  his  unprophet- 
ic  parents,  gathered  a  band  of  the  Indians  and 
clandestinely  took  them  off  to  exhibit  through 
the  country.''* 

Early  in  September  Chambers  paid  a  visit 
to  the  Indian  country  to  arrange  for  the  pay- 
ment of  annuities  which  was  made  in  that 
month.'*^^  Upon  his  return  to  Burlington  he 
found  waiting  for  him  instructions  from  the 
United  States  government  to  enter  into  nego- 
tiations with  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  and  with  the 
Winnebago  Indians.  The  Winnebagoes  on  the 
neutral  strip  were  a  vexing  remnant.  Cham- 
bers was  not  hopeful  about  them.  They  haunt- 
ed the  Mississippi  River  in  spite  of  efforts  to 


180  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

keep  them  inland,  and  such  close  proximity  to 
the  whites  and  the  ubiquitous  whiskey  jug 
wrought  constant  degradation  to  the  rapidly 
thinning  band.  Chambers  saw  no  possibility 
of  treating  with  them  that  fall  for  they  could 
not  be  moved  to  the  Sioux  country  without  the 
consent  of  the  Sioux,  and  they  refused  to  move 
southwest.  He  promised,  however,  to  conamu- 
nicate  with  Agent  Bruce  at  St.  Peters  and  try 
to  get  the  consent  of  the  Sioux  to  receive  the 
Winnebagoes  upon  their  land.^^^ 

But  a  treaty  with  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  was  a 
different  matter.  Here  there  was  both  the  ne- 
cessity and  the  possibility  of  immediate  action, 
and  the  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  be- 
gan at  once  to  make  arrangements.  While  the 
time  was  ripe  for  such  a  step,  there  yet  were 
many  difficulties  to  be  overcome.  An  eager 
white  population,  impatient  and  almost  impos- 
sible of  restraint,  infested  the  border  line, 
ready  to  swoop  across  and  take  up  the  new  land 
upon  the  instant  of  a  treaty's  consummation. 
At  his  September  visit  to  the  Agency,  Chambers 
had  found  hundreds  of  these  landseekers.  They 
came  in  wagons,  on  horse  back,  and  afoot  —  all 
determined  to  believe  that  a  treaty  would  be 
made  and  ready  to  drive  stakes  into  the  choicest 
bits  of  land.    Some  were  peaceable,  and  made  no 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  181 

disturbance;  some  were  drunk,  threatened  the 
Agent,  the  dragoons,  and  the  Governor,  and 
created  so  many  kinds  of  disturbance  that  they 
must  needs  be  placed  under  guard.^^^  So  now 
Governor  Chambers  asked  that  a  full  company 
of  dragoons  be  detailed  from  Fort  Atkinson  to 
proceed  to  the  Indian  country  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  order.^*^^ 

Another  essential  to  the  success  of  the  nego- 
tiation was  an  examination  of  the  claims  of  the 
trading  companies  and  other  creditors  of  the 
Indians.  These  claims  had  been  carefully  kept 
in  readiness  for  an  occasion  just  such  as  this 
when  the  debtors  would  come  into  possession 
of  a  large  amount  of  money.  Chambers  deter- 
mined that  the  Indians'  interests  should  be 
preserved  in  this  matter  and  so  proposed  to 
make  a  thorough  investigation  of  all  demands. 
For  this  purpose  he  appointed  Alfred  Hebard 
and  Arthur  Bridgman  as  special  agents  with 
instructions  to  accompany  him  to  the  Agency 
before  the  close  of  September  and  begin  a  scru- 
tinizing investigation  and  adjustment  of  claims. 
He  directed  Beach  to  assemble  the  chiefs  in 
order  that  the  Indians  might  have  an  opportu- 
nity for  objection. 

The  process  of  sifting  out  the  just  claims  and 
arriving  at  a  fair  schedule  of  the  Sac  and  Fox 


182  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

indebtedness  was  a  laborious  one.  The  number 
of  claims  presented  was  fifty-eight  and  they 
amounted  in  all  to  $312,366.24.  The  agents 
heard  the  testimony  of  traders  and  Indians, 
weighed  the  evidence,  and  reduced  the  total  to 
$258,566.34.  The  claim  of  J.  P.  Eddy  and  Com^ 
pany  they  allowed  in  its  entirety,  and  they  were 
lenient  with  the  demands  of  Pierre  Chouteau 
Jr.  and  Company. 

The  amount  allowed  to  W.  G.  and  G.  W.  Sw- 
ing was  about  twenty-five  per  cent  less  than 
they  had  demanded.  They  had  sold  the  untu- 
tored native  such  useful  objects  as  ^*  Italian 
cravats'',  ^^sattinette  coats'',  and  ^^ looking 
glasses"  charged  at  twenty- two  and  thirty  dol- 
lars. A  clerk  informed  the  investigating  com- 
mission that  these  last  articles  should  have  been 
styled  *^ telescopes".  They  had  found  purchas- 
ers among  the  red  men  for  ^*fine  satin  vests" 
at  eight  dollars  and  fine  spotted  ones  for  six 
and  seven.  They  had  charged  forty-five  dol- 
lars for  *^ dress  coats"  and  ^^ superfine  cloth 
coats"  and  sixty  dollars  for  ^^surtout  coats" 
and  ^^  super  over  coats  ".^^^  Verily  the  white 
pioneer  settler  must  have  felt  sadly  tailored  be- 
side his  Indian  neighbor.  The  profits  upon 
some  articles  were  estimated  at  from  one  to 
nine  hundred  per  cent.^^^ 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  183 

The  negotiation  of  the  treaty  itself  began 
early  in  October.  In  the  negotiations  of  the 
preceding  fall,  the  power  of  the  commissioners 
had  been  more  or  less  limited  to  a  definite  pro- 
posal. In  the  present  instance  Chambers  was 
given  wide  discretionary  powers.  A  large  cir- 
cular tent  had  been  set  up  by  Captain  Beach  for 
a  council  hall.  Within  was  a  raised  platform 
at  one  side  for  the  Commissioner  and  his  aids 
while  the  chiefs  sat  opposite  in  a  circular  row 
of  seats  around  the  body  of  the  tent.  An  open 
space  lay  between,  and  into  this  area  the  Indian 
orators  stepped  as  they  told  of  the  beautiful 
lands  the  Great  Spirit  had  given  them.-*"*^  They 
were  arrayed  in  their  best  blankets,  their  finest 
feathers  and  their  most  showy  trinkets. 

The  Governor,  having  donned  the  uniform  of 
an  officer  of  the  United  States  Army,  opened 
the  council  by  an  address  which  the  interpreter, 
Antoine  LeClaire,  translated  to  the  waiting 
chiefs.  Keokuk  replied,  and  there  followed 
much  language.  When  all  was  said  and  the 
terms  of  sale  were  agreed  upon  the  Sacs  and 
Foxes  had  given  up  their  entire  claim  to  land 
in  the  Territory  of  Iowa.  In  return  Governor 
Chambers,  as  Commissioner  for  the  United 
States  government,  had  agreed  to  pay  the  debts 
allowed  by  the  investigating  agents,  and  to  pay 


184  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

annually  to  the  Indians  the  interest  at  five  per 
cent  on  eight  hundred  thousand  dollars.  The 
Indians  agreed  to  move,  on  or  before  May  1, 
1843,  to  lands  west  of  a  north  and  south  line 
drawn  through  a  certain  point  in  the  upper 
waters  of  the  Eiver  Des  Moines.  A  final  loca- 
tion was  to  be  assigned  them  on  the  Missouri 
Eiver  or  its  waters  and  to  this  spot  they  must 
move  before  the  expiration  of  three  years  from 
the  date  of  the  treaty.^^^ 

On  the  eleventh  of  October,  1842,  the  agree- 
ment was  made,  signatures  were  affixed,  and 
the  council  was  over.  It  was  an  important 
treaty  —  the  most  important  ever  negotiated 
upon  Iowa  soil.  It  had  been  carefully  planned 
and  was  negotiated  with  firmness  and  tact. 
Perhaps  no  event  in  the  life  of  the  Old  Ken- 
tuckian  is  more  worthy  of  attention. 

Experience  with  the  Indians  had  greatly  in-, 
tensified  the  conviction  of  Chambers  that  they 
were  being  daily  sinned  against.  When  the 
Legislative  Assembly  met,  he  denounced  again 
the  sale  of  liquor  to  the  Indians  and  begged 
the  legislators  to  take  measures  to  render  ef- 
ficient the  law  prohibiting  it.^^^  This  law, 
passed  in  1839,  provided  for  a  fine,  on  convic- 
tion of  such  an  offence,  of  from  twenty-five  to 
one  hundred  dollars;  but  the  enormous  profits 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  185 

in  such  traffic  made  the  risk  of  conviction  a 
trifling  matter.  The  message  of  the  Governor 
was  taken  under  consideration  and  in  January, 
1843,  a  law  was  passed  increasing  the  penalty 
to  not  less  than  one  hundred  nor  more  than  five 
hundred  dollars.^^^  It  was  a  step  in  the  right 
direction,  but  it  was  not  such  a  bill  as  Chambers 
had  hoped  for.  He  had  favored  adding  to  the 
pecuniary  infliction  a  term  of  imprisonment. 
The  new  law  came  to  be  disregarded  as  had  the 
old,  and  the  ruination  of  the  Indian  victims 
continued. 

On  May  1,  1843,  the  Sacs  and  Foxes  were  to 
be  west  of  their  new  boundary  line  and  the 
tract  they  had  occupied  would  be  open  to  the 
whites;  for,  though  the  law  decreed  that  sur- 
veys should  be  made  first,  it  was  not  a  point 
that  was  often  insisted  upon  by  the  Federal 
officers.  On  the  eve  of  May  Day  thousands  of 
land  seekers  had  gathered  upon  the  border. 
The  May  time  injunction  **call  me  early,  mother 
dear'*  was  hardly  necessary,  for  it  is  doubtful 
if  there  was  much  sleep  in  those  prairie  camps 
that  night.  All  up  and  down  the  division  line 
watches  and  clocks  ticked  away  steadily,  and 
when  their  hands  drew  near  the  top  of  the  dial 
torches  were  lit.  At  the  hour  of  midnight, 
marked  by  the  firing  of  guns,  the  eager  pioneers 


186  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

crossed  the  line  and  almost  before  the  echo  was 
stilled  were  driving  stakes  into  the  prairie  by 
the  light  of  flaring  torches.^^*  Thus  did  civili- 
zation crowd  the  heel  of  the  departing  red  man. 
The  Sacs  and  Foxes  moved  on  to  western  Iowa 
for  their  brief  sojourn,  and  when  their  allotted 
time  was  up  the  dwindling  band  gathered  its 
ponies  and  camp  outfits  together  and  took  their 
way  to  the  lands  southwest  of  the  Missouri,  ac- 
companied by  a  military  escort  provided  by 
the  United  States  government.^^^ 

Up  in  the  northeast,  meantime,  the  Winne- 
bagoes  were  causing  trouble.  In  the  summer  of 
1841  Governor  Doty  of  Wisconsin  had  negotia- 
ted with  the  Sioux  Indians  a  treaty  for  the 
cession  of  a  tract  of  land  west  of  the  Missis- 
sippi.^^^  A  primary  object  was  to  provide  a 
location  for  the  Winnebagoes,  but  it  was  also 
in  contemplation  to  place  other  tribes  upon 
the  ceded  portion.^^^  The  treaty  was,  however, 
rejected  by  the  United  States  Senate.  In  the 
fall  of  1842  Chambers  received  instructions  to 
negotiate  with  the  Winnebagoes  for  their  re- 
moval from  their  haunts  on  the  Neutral  Ground. 
But  the  proposition  did  not  appear  to  him  feasi- 
ble, and  it  was  deferred.  In  the  summer  of  the 
next  year  he  received  similar  instructions,  and 
in  July  he  entered  into  council  with  the  Indians 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  187 

but  without  avail.^^®  The  tribe  was  fast  giving 
way  to  intemperance;  and  encouraged  by  vi- 
cious and  interested  advisers  among  the  whites 
they  refused  to  remove  from  a  place  where 
whiskey  was  easy  of  access.  Again  in  Novem- 
ber negotiations  with  this  tribe  by  the  United 
States  government  came  to  naught.^®^  Cham- 
bers characterized  them  as  **the  most  drunken, 
worthless  and  degraded  tribe  of  which  I  have 
any  knowledge ''.^^•^  It  was  not  until  October  of 
1846  that  the  Winnebagoes  agreed  to  give  up 
their  lands  on  the  Neutral  Ground  and  moved 
north  of  the  St.  Peters  River.*^* 

The  greatest  factor  in  the  degradation  of 
these  and  of  all  other  Indians  was  the  white 
whiskey  seller;  and  Chambers  lost  no  opportu- 
nity of  making  this  fact  evident.  In  every  regu- 
lar message  of  his  administration  he  urged  upon 
the  legislators  measures  for  the  suppression  of 
this  evil,  and  in  letter  after  letter  to  the  United 
States  government  he  deplored  his  inability  to 
check  its  growth. 

Equally  as  consistent  and  determined  was  his 
opposition  to  the  system  of  trade  and  inter- 
course with  the  Indians.  A  few  months  after 
the  treaty  of  1842  G.  W.  Ewing,  a  member  of 
the  trading  company  whose  claims  had  been  so 
open  to  criticism,  wrote  to  Commissioner  Craw- 


188  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

ford  complaining  of  the  infamous  practices  of 
some  of  the  unlicensed  traders.  Crawford  sent 
the  letter  to  Chambers,  from  whom  he  received 
a  reply  fiery  with  wrath.  ^ '  If  the  vengeance  of 
Heaven'',  he  wrote,  *4s  ever  inflicted  upon  man 
in  this  life,  it  seems  to  me  we  must  yet  see  some 
signal  evidence  of  it  among  these  '  regular  trad- 
ers'.  It  would  be  worthy  of  the  labours  of  a 
casuist  to  determine  whether  the  wretch  who 
sells  a  diseased  or  stolen  horse  to  a  poor  Indian 
or  the  ^regular  trader'  who  sells  him  goods  of 
no  intrinsic  value  to  him,  at  nine  hundred  per 
cent  advance  on  the  cost,  is  the  greater  rascal. 
It  is  deeply  to  be  regret  [t]ed  that  all  your  ef- 
forts to  induce  Congress  to  change  the  system 
have  been  unsuccessful."  ^^^ 

In  his  annual  reports  and  in  frequent  letters 
to  the  Commissioner  a  change  in  the  system 
was  urged  by  Chambers.  ^*  Transfer  to  the 
Agents  of  the  government  the  influence  now, 
and  long  exercised  over  the  Indians  by  the 
traders,  and  nothing  but  the  employment  of  in- 
competent Agents  can  arrest  an  immediate  and 
beneficial  change  in  the  destinies  of  the  Indian 
race."  This  he  wrote  in  September,  1843.^^^ 
The  Legislative  Assembly  which  met  soon  after 
passed  a  memorial  praying  Congress  for  a 
change  in  the  system  of  trade  and  intercourse. 


INDIAN  AFFAIRS  189 

Chambers  sent  the  paper  to  Delegate  Dodge 
with  a  long  letter  setting  forth  his  ideas.  Let 
the  government  establish  depots  of  goods,  he 
urged,  at  each  agency  and  under  the  charge  of 
governmental  agents.  Let  the  goods  be  sold 
to  the  Indians  at  an  advance  above  the  cost  suf- 
ficient to  cover  all  expenses  —  perhaps  ten  per 
cent.  He  had  no  doubt  that  the  Indians  would 
in  this  way  receive  double  the  accustomed  quan- 
tity of  serviceable  goods  for  the  same  price  as 
before,  and  would  soon  come  to  repose  as  much 
confidence  in  the  government  agents  as  they 
now  did  in  the  traders.^^* 

The  record  of  John  Chambers  as  Superin- 
tendent of  Indian  Affairs  is  deserving  of  the 
greatest  praise.  He  came  upon  the  scene  when 
both  governmental  officers  and  Indian  chiefs 
were  in  a  state  of  discord.  He  made  himself 
conversant  with  the  red  population  by  repeated 
visits.  He  studied  their  needs  and  with  unflag- 
ging zeal  contended  for  their  rights  and  inter- 
ests, even  though  it  brought  upon  his  head  the 
harshest  criticism  from  those  whose  iniquitous 
dealings  he  so  fearlessly  denounced.  And  it 
was  by  reason  of  his  able  management  that 
there  was  secured  to  the  United  States  a  peace- 
ful possession  of  the  greater  part  of  what  now 
constitutes  the  State  of  Iowa. 


XV 

The  Yeaks  of  Twilight 

In  the  first  three  years  of  the  Territorial  period 
storm  and  stress  had  characterized  the  admin- 
istration of  Robert  Lucas.  There  had  been 
heated  tempers  and  strained  relations,  abuse 
and  scathing  reply.  But  when  the  stern  first 
Governor  left  the  office,  the  machinery  of  gov- 
ernment was  carefully  organized  and  working 
with  a  fair  degree  of  efficiency.  In  the  period 
that  followed,  the  long  term  of  the  second  Gov- 
ernor, the  Territory  moved  on  to  larger  things. 
Population  grew  by  strides  and  stretched  out 
toward  the  Missouri.  Institutions  sprang  into 
being.  The  Territory  sloughed  off  the  pale 
wrappings  of  its  infant  days  and  busied  itself 
with  the  idea  of  Statehood.  Its  growing  civic 
consciousness  planned  fundamental  laws  and 
knocked  at  the  door  of  Congress  for  admission. 
Its  material  expansion  crowded  the  Indian  over 
upon  the  trans-Missouri  plains  and  peopled  the 
interior.  Then  followed  the  last  term  of  Terri- 
torial   Governorship  —  the    scant    year   under 

190 


THE  YEARS  OF  TWILIGHT  191 

James  Clarke.  It  was  but  a  transition  stage 
from  the  ripening  Territory  to  the  full  fruition 
of  Statehood. 

It  was  the  opportunity  of  this  long  second 
term  of  progress  that  had  come  to  Governor 
John  Chambers.  With  an  unflagging  zeal  that 
had  marked  his  entire  career  he  acted  to  the 
best  of  his  strength  and  wisdom  the  double  role 
of  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs until  a  Democratic  President  saw  fit  to  re- 
move him.  For  the  sake  of  his  health  the  re- 
lease came  none  too  soon.  Ceaseless  application 
to  his  official  duties  had  told  severely  upon  his 
strength  and  made  rest  a  necessity.  Early  in 
November  he  quitted  the  town  of  Burlington 
and  journeyed  to  his  old  home  in  Kentucky.  He 
reached  Maysville  on  Wednesday  night,  Novem- 
ber 19,  1845,^^^  and  soon  was  with  his  daughter 
Jane  and  her  husband,  J.  S.  Forman,  who  were 
now  occupying  the  old  home  at  Cedar  Hill. 
From  there  he  went  inland  to  Paris  to  visit 
the  Brents,  but  returned  shortly  after  Christ- 
mas to  Mason  County. 

From  Washington  he  wrote  in  the  latter  part 
of  December  to  William  Penn  Clarke,  thanking 
him  for  sending  a  copy  of  the  message  of  Gov- 
ernor James  Clarke,  who  had  come  into  office 
in   November  as  the  successor  of  Chambers. 


192  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

**My  health  is  improving'',  he  said,  *^and  my 
flesh  increasing,  but  I  am  still  a  good  deal 
weaker  than  when  in  health.  The  prospect  of 
a  complete  restoration  is  more  favorable  than  I 
had  hoped  for,  and  I  shall  be  with  you  early  in 
the  spring,  and  take  hold  of  the  plow-handles, 
or  put  my  shoulder  to  the  wheel,  as  circum- 
stances may  require.''  ^'^^  He  discussed  the  po- 
litical situation  in  Iowa  with  a  spirit  that  left 
no  doubt  as  to  his  interest  in  the  Commonwealth 
whose  government  he  had  directed.  In  Febru- 
ary he  wrote:  **If  I  live  and  have  strength 
enough,  I  shall  return  to  Iowa  in  the  spring.  I 
cannot  be  contented  here  —  the  very  sight  of 
the  negroes  annoys  me. ' '  ^^"^ 

True  to  his  word,  before  the  summer  of  1846 
he  was  back  at  Grouseland  in  the  Territory  of 
Iowa.  A  rare  tribute  came  to  him  here.  The 
Mexican  War  broke  out  in  the  early  summer 
and  all  over  the  country  troops  were  organizing 
for  the  fray.  Not  knowing  of  the  feeble  con- 
dition of  his  predecessor  in  office.  Governor 
Clarke  came  out  one  day  to  the  country  home  of 
Chambers  to  offer  him  the  command  of  the 
Iowa  troops  raised  for  the  war.  His  health  of 
course  forbade  his  accepting.  He  had  lost 
ninety  pounds  in  flesh  and  was  hardly  more 
than  a  shadow  of  his  former  self.    But  for  his 


THE  YEARS  OF  TWILIGHT  193 

physical  condition,  he  wrote  a  few  days  later 
to  a  friend,  he  would  not  have  hesitated,  much 
as  he  disapproved  of  the  course  of  the  govern- 
ment in  bringing  on  the  war.^'^^ 

Through  the  summer  he  remained  at  Grouse- 
land.  In  August  he  wrote  of  slightly  improved 
health,  but  he  still  weighed  only  one  hundred 
twenty-seven  pounds.^^^  The  spirit,  however, 
was  as  active  as  ever.  A  second  Democratic 
Constitutional  Convention  had  met  in  May  and 
drawn  up  an  instrument  known  as  the  Consti- 
tution of  1846.  It  met  the  approval  of  Cham- 
bers no  more  than  had  its  predecessor,  the  Con- 
stitution of  1844.  **I  go  against  iV\  he  said, 
**as  I  will  against  every  other  which  contains 
the  odious  feature  of  an  Elective  Judiciary,  and 
takes  from  the  people  the  ordinary  powers  of 
Legislation  in  relation  to  Incorporations.  *  ^  ^^^ 
He  also  objected  to  the  provision  which  made 
amendment  possible  only  by  the  calling  of  a 
convention  to  revise  the  instrument. 

He  was  still  at  Grouseland  in  September, 
1846,  and  from  there  wrote  to  William  Penn 
Clarke  a  long  letter  on  political  affairs.^®^  The 
Whigs  were  about  to  hold  a  convention  to  nomi- 
nate State  and  Congressional  candidates,  the 
Constitution  having  been  ratified  by  the  people ; 
and  it  was  this  convention  which  stirred  the 
13 


194  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

interest  of  John  Chambers.  Evidently  Cham- 
bers had  been  spoken  of  as  a  candidate  for  the 
office  of  Governor.  He  authorized  Mr.  Clarke 
to  say  for  him  that  his  health  would  not  permit 
him  to  become  a  candidate  for  office  at  this 
time.  He  remarked,  however,  that  should  his 
health  become  reestablished  and  should  the 
Whigs  in  the  future  desire  his  services  for  any 
post  he  would  not  decline.  Neither  ill  health 
nor  advancing  age  had  weakened  the  interest 
which  the  Old  Kentuckian  felt  in  politics  and  in 
the  affairs  of  the  new  State.  He  proceeded  to 
name  over  the  possible  candidates  for  this  or 
that  office,  to  discuss  party  strength  and  local 
majorities,  and  to  express  his  opinion  as  to  the 
most  expedient  men  to  receive  the  Whig  sup- 
port. 

In  this  letter  James  W.  Grimes  received  the 
full  strength  of  an  outbreak  of  Kentuckian 
wrath.  Chambers  had  been  informed  that 
Grimes  was  going  to  the  convention  with  the 
intention  of  preventing  him  from  being  nomi- 
nated to  office.  The  lines  of  the  letter  wherein 
he  conveys  to  Clarke  his  opinion  of  Grimes  and 
his  methods  are,  to  say  the  least,  not  highly 
complimentary  to  that  gentleman. 

It  is  difficult  to  do  more  than  guess  at  the  life 
of  John  Chambers  for  the  next  year  and  a  half. 


THE  YEARS  OP  TWILIGHT  I95 

His  desire  to  remain  in  Iowa  was  not  destined 
to  be  gratified,  probably  because  of  his  continu- 
ing ill  health.  Joseph  Sprigg  Chambers,  who 
had  stayed  with  him  in  Iowa  longer  than  any 
of  the  rest  of  his  children,  returned  to  Mason 
County  and  on  February  19,  1847,  published  the 
first  issue  of  The  Maysville  Herald,  of  which  he 
was  the  editor  and  proprietor.^^^  n  seems  like- 
ly that  during  this  winter  John  Chambers  also 
had  journeyed  back  to  the  scenes  of  his  younger 
days.  At  first  he  visited  Jane  at  Cedar  Hill; 
but  he  soon  set  about  building  a  new  home  of 
his  own  a  short  distance  east  of  Maysville. 
Here  he  installed  himself  in  1848.  About  this 
time  the  old  home  at  Cedar  Hill  was  sold  by 
J.  S.  Forman  to  Colonel  Goggin,  whose  kin  still 
own  and  live  in  the  house. 

It  was  a  quiet  life  that  the  ex-Governor  now 
lived.  He  visited  his  children  frequently,  and 
they  in  turn  came  to  stay  with  him.  Through 
all  his  years  he  had  found  happiness  in  flowers 
and  in  gardening,  and  now  the  opportunity  per- 
mitted a  full  gratification.  He  also  kept  chick- 
ens which  he  tended  with  the  greatest  care, 
feeding  them  with  small  potatoes  which  he 
boiled  and  mashed  in  their  skins. 

The  greatest  source  of  information  concern- 
ing these  later  days  of  the  life  of  Chambers  is 


196  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

a  series  of  letters  which  he  wrote  to  his  young- 
est son,  Henry  Chambers.^^^  Henry  was  at 
Louisville  during  these  years,  unmarried  and 
casting  about  for  his  life  work;  and  to  him  the 
old  Governor  seemed  to  turn  with  a  particular 
fondness.  He  advised  with  him  about  the  choice 
of  a  profession,  condoled  with  him  in  his  dis- 
couragements, and  poured  out  to  him  as  he 
probably  did  to  no  other  person  his  own  sor- 
rows. The  last  six  years  had  in  them  much  of 
pathos.  He  was  a  lonely  old  man,  suffering 
almost  continuously  from  poor  health. 

In  the  spring  of  1849  he  wrote  to  Henry  from 
his  home  above  Maysville  telling  him  of  the 
news  from  the  relatives  and  discussing  the 
spread  of  cholera  in  the  towns  along  the  river. 
He  ended  with  the  injunction:  **If  the  cholera 
spreads  in  Louisville  you  must  come  home  or 
write  to  me  every  other  day  if  not  every 
(j^y  j>384  rpj^g  disease,  however,  took  effect  in 
another  direction.  On  the  second  of  September 
in  the  same  year,  Mary  and  Laura,  the  two 
youngest  daughters  who  had  for  a  time  kept 
house  for  the  Governor  at  Grouseland,  both  died 
and  were  buried  in  the  same  grave  at  Paris.^^^ 

It  was  perhaps  fortunate  that  there  came  at 
this  time  a  call  to  public  duties  that  took  Cham- 
bers  away  from   Kentucky   and   engaged  his 


THE  YEARS  OF  TWILIGHT  197 

thoughts  in  the  time  immediately  following  his 
bereavement.  He  had  evidently  not  been  for- 
gotten by  those  at  Washington,  D.  C,  who  had 
known  of  his  experience  in  Indian  affairs,  for 
he  now  received  an  appointment  to  proceed  to 
Mendota  at  the  juncture  of  the  Minnesota  and 
Mississippi  rivers  and  there,  in  connection  with 
Governor  Ramsay  of  the  Territory  of  Minne- 
sota, negotiate  a  treaty  of  cession  with  the 
Sioux  Indians. 

He  left  Maysville  on  Thursday,  September 
6, 1849,  with  his  son-in-law,  J.  S.  Forman.  The 
trip  by  boat  was  a  tedious  one.  They  stopped 
at  Ripley  to  see  Francis  Taylor,  who  fifty-two 
years  before  had  made  John  Chambers  his 
Deputy  Clerk,  and  at  Cincinnati  they  visited 
Frank  Chambers.^*^  Then  they  passed  on  down 
the  Ohio  and  up  the  Mississippi,  reaching  the 
site  of  Fort  Snelling  and  Mendota  after  three 
long  weeks. 

Upwards  of  two  thousand  Indians  had  come 
together  by  the  first  of  October,  and  several 
thousand  more  were  expected.  In  front  of  the 
tent  of  Chambers  on  Sunday,  the  last  day  of 
September,  they  held  a  scalp-dance.  These 
dances  were  repeated  at  various  times  during 
the  negotiations  being  participated  in  by  from 
three  to  five  hundred  at  a  time.^^^    Their  annul- 


198  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

ties  were  paid  at  this  time,  and  great  efforts 
were  made  during  several  weeks  to  secure  a 
purchase  of  land;  but  no  treaty  was  made,  al- 
though Chambers  refers  to  the  negotiation  as 
partially  successful.  Chambers  returned  to 
Kentucky  in  the  winter,  loaded  down  with  In- 
dian trinkets  and  relics  for  his  grand- children. 

Never  did  Chambers  lose  interest  in  his  chil- 
dren and  his  grand-children.  The  latter  looked 
up  to  him  with  something  of  fear  and  remem- 
bered him  as  a  man  of  sternness,  but  they  well 
knew  the  affection  that  lay  beneath  his  digni- 
fied mien.  In  his  letters  he  reveals  his  true  self. 
The  death  of  a  child  of  his  daughter  Matilda 
brought  from  him  in  October,  1850,  a  letter  full 
of  sympathy  and  counsel.  *^It  can  avail  little 
my  child",  he  wrote,  '*to  know  that  your  aged 
father  sympathizes  with  you  in  your  distress, 
and  feels  more  than  from  his  old  age,  and  re- 
cluse habits  might  be  expected. ' '  ^^^  He  then 
spoke  of  some  of  his  own  sorrows  in  the  three 
score  and  ten  years  of  his  life,  and  wondered 
that  his  heart  had  not  long  since  broken. 

Good  counsel  abounded  in  his  letters  to  his 
children.  ^^The  great  secret  of  human  happi- 
ness consists  in  making  others  happy",  he  ad- 
monished his  daughter  Jane  in  a  letter  written 
from  Washington,  D.  C,  back  in  the  days  of  his 


THE  YEARS  OF  TWILIGHT  199 

Congressional  career.  He  seldom  mentioned 
religious  subjects,  but  in  this  same  letter  he  took 
occasion  to  speak  very  clearly  of  his  ideas.  He 
recommended  to  Jane  the  reading  of  the  New 
Testament  which,  he  wrote,  contained  ^*many 
of  the  finest  moral  precepts  that  ever  were  writ- 
ten." **No  person",  he  continued,  **was  ever 
rendered  worse  by  becoming  a  christian  in  be- 
lief and  in  faith,  but  many  believers  become  in- 
tolerant, vindictive  and  grossly  sinful  by  at- 
taching themselves  to  sectarian  doctrines  and 
denouncing  all  who  do  not  concur  with  them  in 
their  narrow  views  &  sectarian  prejudices.  You 
would  perhaps  think  it  strange  to  be  told  my 
daughter  that  your  father  never  lays  his  head 
down  to  rest  without  a  deep  and  ardent  expres- 
sion of  gratitude  to  the  giver  of  all  good  for  his 
daily  bounty  for  his  forbearance  and  mercy  to- 
ward him  and  his  beloved  children  and  implor- 
ing the  protection  of  a  merciful  providence  ".^^^ 
Though  the  years  came  on  apace  and  sickness 
racked  his  body,  Chambers  did  not  descend  into 
that  doddering  stage  of  senility  that  comes 
upon  so  many  men.  That  the  Kentucky  spirit 
still  burned  fiercely  in  his  seventy-first  summer, 
is  well  shown  by  an  incident  which  he  detailed 
to  his  son  Henry  in  a  letter  written  in  May, 
1851.     It  is  evident  that  the  old  man  had  an 


200  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

unsettled  account,  not  financial,  which  he  de- 
sired to  settle.  His  own  words  best  tell  the 
tale: 

A  few  days  ago  I  met  ....  a  certain  cousen  of 
yours,  who  I  have  been  indebted  to  for  some  time, 
but  could  not  consent  to  pay  him  while  his  excellent 
father  lived,  that  difficulty  removed  I  apprised  him 
some  time  ago  that  whenever  a  suitable  occasion  pre- 
sented itself  he  would  get  it,  so  meeting  on  water 
street  (no  person  in  sight)  I  give  him  my  stick  over 
his  head  &  upon  his  twisting  it  out  of  my  hand  &  rais- 
ing it  as  if  to  strike  I  struck  him  in  the  mouth  with 
my  fist  &  again  near  the  eye  and  then  taking  out  my 
pen  knife  I  made  him  give  up  the  stick  &  again 
struck  him  over  the  head,  by  that  time  several  persons 
reached  the  field  &  put  a  stop  to  the  scene  I  did  not 
hurt  him  seriously  nor  did  I  intend  it.  My  object 
was  to  disgrace  him,  and  think  even  that  was  hardly 
necessary,  for  he  is  very  much  despised  in  town  —  it 
will  however  teach  him  that  it  is  not  entirely  safe  to 
lie  even  about  an  old  man.^^^ 

Perhaps  this  encounter  convinced  the  people 
of  Mason  County  that  the  Old  Kentuckian  was 
still  good  for  years  of  political  service.  At  all 
events  he  wrote  in  June,  1851,  to  Henry  to  say 
that  an  attempt  had  been  made  to  induce,  *'if 
not  to  force '^  him  to  become  a  candidate  for  the 
Senate  of  the  State  to  represent  Mason  and 
Lewis  counties.  He  over  and  over  again  had 
emphatically  refused  to  sanction  the  use  of  his 


THE  YEARS  OF  TWILIGHT  201 

name,  but  he  feared  that  a  public  declaration 
would  be  necessary  to  keep  them  from  nominat- 
ing him.  Four  days  later  he  said  in  a  letter  to 
his  daughter  Jane:  *^I  believe  I  have  got  out 
of  my  political  difficulty,  for  I  have  positively 
refused  to  suffer  myself  to  be  used  as  a  candi- 
date and  after  the  meeting  of  the  County  con- 
vention (day  after  tomorrow)  I  suppose  there 
will  be  no  more  said  about  it.  Your  excuse  for 
me  that  I  am  upwards  of  70  years  old  seemed 
to  have  no  effect,  for  every  body  insisted  that  I 
was  just  as  able  to  do  service  as  ever  I  was  — 
fools,  they  don't  know  how  a  man  of  seventy 
years  old  feels ''.^^^ 

In  fact  his  health  was  very  poor  at  this  time 
and  he  was  restless.  He  visited  various  springs 
in  search  of  relief,  and  made  several  visits  to 
Paris.  When  cold  weather  came  on  he  went  out 
to  the  little  town  of  Washington  and  spent  the 
winter  at  the  tavern.  Here  he  began  and  labo- 
riously finished  the  Autobiography  which  Henry 
had  asked  for.  The  request  of  Henry's  had 
pleased  him  greatly  and  he  had  been  happy  in 
writing  out  the  sketch  even  though  it  was  a 
task  of  no  small  proportions  to  one  so  feeble. 
On  December  he  wrote  a  long  letter  to  Henry 
telling  of  his  progress  on  the  sketch  and  adding 
the  impatient  postscript:     **I  am  reduced  to 


202  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

writing  with  a  steel  pen  and  would  as  soon  dig 
potatoes  with  a  negroe  mall/'^^^  j^  January 
he  completed  the  autobiographical  sketch  and 
sent  it  to  Henry.^^^ 

Before  March  began  he  had  moved  out  to 
Paris  and  was  living  at  the  home  of  his  daugh- 
ter Matilda.  It  was  his  last  move.  In  the  late 
sununer  he  found  himself  no  longer  able  to  sit 
up ;  and  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  of  Sep- 
tember 21,  1852,  he  died  at  the  home  of  his 
daughter,  Matilda  Brent,  at  Paris.^^*  His  body 
was  taken  on  the  following  day  to  the  town  of 
Washington,  and  there  he  was  buried  near  the 
scenes  of  his  young  days,  the  old  turnpike  road, 
the  court  house  where  he  had  argued  so  many 
cases,  and  the  old  home  at  Cedar  Hill  where  he 
and  Hannah  had  spent  so  many  happy  years. 

No  tombstone  marks  the  grave  of  John 
Chambers.  The  wild  grass  and  bushes  overrun 
the  spot.  But  the  life  of  the  big-hearted  Old 
Kentuckian  finds  its  symbol  in  a  large  pine, 
sturdy  and  straight,  that  reaches  long  branches 
out  over  the  place  where  he  lies  buried. 


NOTES    AND    REFERENCES 


203 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES 

CHAPTER  I 

^  In  the  Autobiography  of  John  Chamhers,  written 
during  the  last  year  of  his  life,  appears  the  following 
statement  concerning  the  ancestors  of  Governor 
Chambers : 

I  have  understood  that  they  were  of  Scotch  origin,  and  from 
a  conversation  between  my  father  and  a  very  aged  Scotchman 
when  I  was  a  boy,  I  learned  that  my  more  remote  ancestors 
were  of  the  Scotch  clan  Cameron,  and  bore  the  name  of  the 
clan,  but  refusing  to  join  in  the  rebellion  of  1645,  they  were 
compelled  to  emigrate,  and  took  shelter  in  Ireland,  changing 
their  name  to  Chambers,  which  they  were  afterwards  per- 
mit[t]ed  by  an  act  of  the  British  Parliament  to  retain. 

An  effort  was  made  by  Mr.  Jacob  Van  der  Zee  to 
verify  these  statements  by  an  examination  of  mate- 
rials in  Oxford  and  London,  but  no  substantiating 
evidence  was  found. 

This  Autobiography y  which  was  recently  secured  by 
Benj.  F.  Shambaugh  from  Mrs.  Henry  Chambers,  has 
been  edited  by  John  C.  Parish  and  published  by  The 
State  Historical  Society  of  Iowa.  The  original  manu- 
script has  been  for  over  half  a  century  in  the  posses- 
sion of  the  family  of  Henry  Chambers,  the  youngest 
son  of  the  Governor.  Constant  use  has  been  made 
of  the  material  given  therein.  It  will  be  referred  to 
in  these  pages  as  the  Autobiography  of  John  Cham- 
bers. 

205 


206  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

-  Many  of  the  facts  concerning  the  family  of  John 
Chambers  have  been  gathered  from  an  unpublished 
Chambers  Genealogy,  compiled  from  old  letters,  wills, 
family  Bibles,  and  other  original  records  by  Mr. 
Harry  Brent  Mackoy  of  Covington,  Kentucky,  a 
great  grandson  of  Governor  John  Chambers.  A  copy 
of  this  manuscript  was  kindly  loaned  to  The  State 
Historical  Society  of  Iowa  by  Mr.  Mackoy  for  use  in 
the  preparation  of  this  volume.  It  will  be  referred 
to  herein  as  Mackoy 's  Chambers  Genealogy  (Manu- 
script). 

^  Chambers  makes  the  statement  in  his  Autobiog- 
raphy that  his  grandfather,  James  Chambers,  settled 
on  the  Juniata  River,  while  Mackoy  places  his  as  well 
as  his  father's  location  as  given  in  the  text. —  See 
Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  1;  and  Mackoy 's 
Chambers  Genealogy   (Manuscript). 

*  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  2. 

^  Mackoy 's  Chambers  Genealogy   (Manuscript). 

^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  5. 

^  There  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Harry  Brent 
Mackoy  a  certificate  from  the  office  of  the  Adjutant 
General,  Trenton,  New  Jersey,  to  the  effect  that  Row- 
land Chambers  served  as  a  private  in  Jacob  Ten 
Eyck's  Company,  First  Battalion,  Somerset  County, 
New  Jersey  Militia,  during  the  Revolution.  John 
Chambers  makes  the  assertion  in  his  Autobiography 
(p.  5)  that  his  father  was  in  command  of  a  regiment 
of  New  Jersey  militia  and  the  statement  receives 
credit  by  Mackoy. 

^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  7. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  207 

®  Hulbert  's  Historic  Highways  of  America,  Vol.  XI, 
pp.  156,  157. 

*•»  Chapter  III  in  Volume  XI  of  Hulbert 's  Historic 
Highways  of  America  is  devoted  to  a  discussion  of 
Zane's  Trace  and  the  Maysville  Pike. 

"  The  famous  Wilderness  Road  which  pierced  the 
mountain  wall  at  Cumberland  Gap,  and  over  which 
80  many  thousand  of  Kentucky's  pioneers  traveled, 
was  laid  out  by  Daniel  Boone  in  1775. —  See  Roose- 
velt's  The  Winning  of  the  West,  Vol.  I,  p.  302,  303; 
and  Hulbert 's  Historic  Highways  of  America,  Vol.  VI. 

"  Collinses  History  of  Kentucky,  Vol.  I. 

"  Hening's  Statutes  of  Virginia,  Vol.  XII,  p.  361. 

CHAPTEB  II 

**  A  stone  over  the  front  doorway  bears  the  initials 
(L.  C.)  of  the  builder,  Lewis  Craig,  and  the  date 
1794.  From  this  time  until  1848,  when  Maysville  was 
made  the  county  seat,  this  building  was  the  scene  of 
hundreds  of  historic  meetings  and  the  forum  of  a  half 
century  of  Kentucky  eloquence.  In  the  front  court 
yard  was  held  many  a  slave  sale,  and  it  was  while 
watching  one  of  these  scenes  that  Harriet  Beecher 
Stowe,  a  visitor  in  the  town,  conceived  the  idea  of  the 
slave  sale  in  Uncle  Tom^s  Cahin.  [In  1909,  after  the 
above  was  written,  the  court-house  was  destroyed  by 
fire.] 

"  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  7,  8. 

^*  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  8.  / 


208  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^^  Francis  Taylor  was  the  son  of  Major  Ignatius 
Taylor  of  Hagerstown,  Maryland,  by  his  first  wife. 
He  came  from  Hagerstown  to  Kentucky  in  his  early 
manhood  and  was  a  very  successful  lawyer. 

^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  9,  10. 

^®  Rules  of  the  Washington  District  Court,  pp.  59- 
60.  This  ancient  record  of  cases  coming  before  the 
District  Court  in  Washington  is  preserved  in  the  Of- 
fice of  the  Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court  at  Maysville, 
Mason  County,  Kentucky. 

2°  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  28,  An  ef- 
fort was  made  by  the  writer  to  find  the  records  of 
the  town  of  Washington,  both  in  Washington  and  in 
Maysville,  but  without  success.  The  county  records, 
however,  were  safely  transferred  from  Washington  to 
Maysville  when  the  latter  place  was  made  the  county 
seat,  and  are  preserved  in  excellent  condition. 

2^  The  license  of  John  Chambers  to  practice  law  ' '  in 
any  of  the  Courts  within  this  Commonwealth"  has 
been  preserved  by  his  descendants.  It  is  a  sheepskin 
manuscript,  yellow  with  age  but  still  clearly  legible. 
It  bears  the  date  of  November  5,  1800,  and  is  signed 
by  John  Coburn  and  John  Allen,  before  whom  he 
appeared  for  examination. 

CHAPTEE  III 

22  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  10.  Just 
when  Rowland  Chambers  and  his  wife  returned  to 
Washington  is  difficult  to  say.  John  Chambers  says 
that  he  proposed  their  removal  in  the  spring  of  1801 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  209 

and  **soon  accomplished"  it.  Order  Book  A  (p.  100), 
however,  of  the  Bracken  County  Court  shows  that  on 
July  4,  1801,  Rowland  Chambers  qualified  as  a  Jus- 
tice of  Peace  of  that  County. 

^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  12. 

^*  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  14. 

^*  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  14. 

^"  These  volumes  are  now  preserved  in  the  Office  of 
the  Clerk  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Mason  County,  at 
Maysville,  Kentucky. 

^''  fiecord  of  Personal  Actions,  A,  Circuit  Court  of 
Mason  County,  Kentucky. 

^'  Record  of  Personal  Actions,  B,  Circuit  Court  of 
Mason  County,  Kentucky. 

*•  Record  of  Personal  Actions,  B,  Circuit  Court  of 
Mason  County,  Kentucky. 

'°  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  39. 

^*  Ignatius  Taylor,  the  father-in-law  of  John  Cham- 
bers by  both  his  first  and  second  marriages,  was  mar- 
ried three  times,  in  each  case  marrying  a  widow  who 
had  children  by  a  former  marriage.  His  first  wife 
was  Mrs.  Ann  Parran  (nee  Wilkinson)  and  their 
children  were  Francis  Taylor,  and  Ann  Taylor  who 
married  one  Joseph  Sprigg.  The  second  wife  of  Ig- 
natius Taylor  was  a  Mrs.  Jourdan,  and  their  only 
child  was  Margaret  Taylor,  the  first  wife  of  John 
Chambers.  Ignatius  Taylor's  third  wife  was  Mrs. 
Hall  (Barbara  Bowie)  and  their  oldest  daughter  was 
Hannah  Taylor,  the  second  wife  of  John  Chambers. 
The  above  facts  are  taken  largely  from  manuscript 
14 


210  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

notes  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Harry  B.  Mackoy  of 
Covington,  Kentucky. 

^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  15. 

^^  Cedar  Hill  is  now  owned  by  Mr.  Lucien  Maltby, 
by  whom  the  house  has  been  recently  remodeled  and 
improved.  Aside  from  the  addition  of  a  porch  extend- 
ing across  the  entire  front  of  the  house,  in  place  of 
the  original  one  which  was  much  smaller,  the  gen- 
eral effect  of  the  house  has  been  little  changed.  The 
old  fireplaces  and  mantels,  the  walnut  hand  rail  and 
the  simple  balusters  of  the  graceful  stairway  remain 
as  before,  and  at  every  turn  one  feels  the  spell  of  the 
former  days. 

^*  Manuscript  letter  from  Jane  Chambers  Forman 
to  Governor  John  Chambers,  February  5,  1842. 

^^  These  miniatures  are  now  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Henry  Chambers,  of  Louisville,  Kentucky. 
Plates  were  first  made  from  them  for  the  Autobiog- 
raphy of  John  Chambers.  In  this  volume  they  appear 
opposite  page  26. 

^^  Manuscript  letter  from  Throckmorton  Forman  to 
Mrs.  M.  B.  Mackoy,  February  6,  1893. 

^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  16.  There 
is  in  the  Historical  Department  at  Des  Moines  a  let- 
ter from  John  Chambers  to  Messrs.  N.  Poyntz  and 
Company  of  Maysville,  Kentucky,  dated  January  18, 
1832,  itemizing  a  quantity  of  rope  which  he  was  send- 
ing to  that  company  for  sale  by  them.  The  rope- 
walk  was  finally  sold  to  John  S.  Forman,  a  son-in-law 
of  John  Chambers. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  211 

CHAPTEE  IV 

'^Shaler's  Kentucky ,  p.  158. 

*®  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  16,  17. 

*®  Journal  of  Hov^e  of  Representatives  (Kentucky), 
1812-1813,  p.  9. 

*^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Kentucky), 
1812-1813,  pp.  3,  4. 

*^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Kentucky), 
1812-1813,  pp.  6,  8. 

^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Kentucky), 
1812-1813,  pp.  58,  74,  110,  111. 

**  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1812-1813,  p.  106. 

*"  For   accounts    of   this    engagement,    see    Henry 
Adams's  History  of  the  United  States,  Vol.  VII,  pp. 
72-98;  also  Lossing's  Pictorial  F eld-Book  of  the  War 
of  1812,  pp.  354-360. 

**  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  18. 

*^  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1812-1813,  p.  99. 

*®  This  letter,  written  from  Frankfort  on  August  20, 
1813,  was  found  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Throckmor- 
ton Forman  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio. 

**  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  20. 

*®  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  20 

"^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  20,  21. 

"^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  21. 

"•^  Henry  Adams 's  History  of  the  United  States,  Vol. 
VII,  p.  130. 


212  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Richardson's  War  of  1812  (Casselman  edition),  p. 
206.  John  Richardson  was  a  Major  in  the  army  of 
Procter  and  his  account  is  valuable  because  of  the 
British  view  point  which  it  gives. 

^*  Henry  Adams 's  History  of  the  United  States, 
Vol.  VII,  p.  133. 

^''Richardson's  War  of  1812  (Casselman  edition), 
p.  212;  Henry  Adams's  History  of  the  United  States, 
Vol.  VII,  p.  140;  and  Lossing's  Pictorial  Field-Book 
of  the  War  of  1812,  p.  556. 

^®  M  'Af ee  's  History  of  the  Late  War  in  the  Western 
Country,  p.  398;  and  Lossing's  Pictorial  Field-Book 
of  the  War  of  1812,  p.  555. 

^''  Report  of  General  Harrison  to  John  Armstrong, 
Secretary  of  War,  October  9,  1813. 

^«  This  letter,  dated  October  14,  1813,  was  found  in 
the  possession  of  Mr.  Throckmorton  Forman  of  Cin- 
cinnati, Ohio. 

CHAPTEE  V 

^®  In  Circuit  Order  Book,  H,  p.  411,  of  the  Mason 
County  Circuit  Court,  proceedings  are  recorded  for 
the  May  term,  1816,  involving  the  firm  of  Chambers 
and  Taylor.  In  Circuit  Order  Book,  I,  p.  163,  further 
proceedings  in  the  same  case  are  recorded  for  the 
November  term,  1816,  and  John  Chambers  is  here 
mentioned  as  the  surviving  partner  of  the  late  firm  of 
Chambers  and  Taylor. 

^°  This  information  is  given  in  a  letter  from  Wil- 
liam Paxton,  son  of  James  A.  Paxton,  to  Throckmor- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  213 

ton  Forman.     The  relationship  is  mentioned  in  the 
Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  26. 

"^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  22. 

^^  J  our  mil  of  House  of  Representatives  (Kentucky), 
1815-1816,  passim. 

^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  22. 

^*  The  commission  of  John  Chambers  as  Justice  of 
Peace  is  in  the  County  Clerk's  Office  at  Maysville, 
Kentucky,  and  bears  the  date  May  11,  1819.  See  also 
Register  of  Justices  in  the  State  House  at  Frankfort, 
Kentucky.  His  resignation  is  recorded  in  a  manu- 
script volume  entitled  County  Order  K,  on  June  7, 
1823.  This  series  of  records  is  preserved  in  the  Of- 
fice of  County  Clerk  at  Maysville,  Kentucky,  and  is 
the  official  account  of  the  doings  of  the  County  Court, 
which  consisted  of  the  Justices  of  the  Peace  of  the 
county,  meeting  as  one  body.  The  office  of  Justice 
was  filled  by  commission  from  the  Governor,  upon 
nominations  made  by  the  Justices  of  each  county.  At 
the  February  term  of  the  Mason  County  Court,  in 
1819,  a  majority  of  the  Justices  met  and  recommended 
John  Chambers  and  James  A.  Paxton  as  proper  per- 
sons from  whom  the  Governor  might  choose  a  Justice. 
It  is  presumable  that  Chambers  and  Paxton  were  at 
this  time  law  partners. —  See  County  Court  Order 
Book,  H,  p.  291. 

^^  Chambers  was  nominated  for  this  position  on 
February  12,  1820,  and  commissioned  two  days  later. 
—  See  Executive  Journal  of  Governors  Madison  and 
Slaughter,  1816-1820,  pp.  219,  221.    The  original  vol- 


214  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

umes  here   referred  to   are  in  the   State   House   at 
Frankfort,  Kentucky. 

®®  The  most  detailed  account  of  this  period  of  mone- 
tary  difficulties  of  which  the  writer  has  knowledge  is 
an  extended  article  on  The  Old  and  New  Court  Strug- 
gle ^  by  W.  H.  Mackoy  of  Covington,  Kentucky,  ap- 
pearing in  The  Lawyers  and  Lawmakers  of  Kentucky ^ 
pp.  304-318.  The  manuscript  of  this  article  was  kind- 
ly loaned  to  the  writer  by  Mr.  Mackoy  and  has 
proven  of  great  service  in  the  preparation  of  the 
present  chapter.  Good  accounts  are  also  given  in 
Collins 's  History  of  Kentucky,  in  Smith 's  The  History 
of  Kentucky,  and  in  Shaler's  Kentucky.  Much  origi- 
nal material  is  to  be  found  in  the  newspapers  of  the 
time,  in  the  Journals  and  Laws  of  the  Kentucky  Leg- 
islature and  in  the  reports  of  the  Court  of  Appeals. 
In  Frankfort  two  weekly  publications  reflected  the 
partisanship  of  the  contest.  These  were  the  Patriot, 
the  organ  of  the  New  Court  Party,  and  the  Spirit  of 
'76,  representing  the  Old  Court.  The  issues  of  Niles* 
Register  also  contain  much  good  material. 

«^  Mackoy 's  The  Old  and  New  Court  Struggle  in 
The  Lawyers  and  Lawmakers  of  Kentucky. 

«^  Mackoy 's  The  Old  and  Neiv  Court  Struggle  in 
The  Lawyers  and  Lawmakers  of  Kentucky. 

«» Mackoy 's  The  Old  and  New  Court  Struggle  in 
The  Lawyers  and  Lawmakers  of  Kentucky. 

^0  The  Bank  of  Kentucky  had  for  many  years  ex- 
isted on  a  sound  basis.  Recently,  due  to  the  demand 
made  upon  it  by  the  United  States  Bank  for  the  pay- 
ment of  its  notes,  it  had  been  forced  to  suspend  specie 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  215 

payments.  The  financial  legislation  on  the  part  of 
Kentucky  gradually  forced  it  into  bankruptcy,  and  in 
1822  its  charter  was  repealed. 

^^  Sumner's  History  of  American  Currency,  pp. 
81,  84;  Mackoy's  The  Old  and  New  Court  Struggle  in 
The  Lawyers  and  Lawmakers  of  Kentucky. 

^^  Blair  v.  Williams,  4  Littell  34.  This  case  was  ap- 
pealed from  the  decision  of  Judge  Clark  of  the  Bour- 
bon Circuit  Court,  who  had  held  the  law  unconstitu- 
tional. 

^^  The  decision  in  the  case  of  Blair  v.  Williams  was 
given  on  October  8,  1823.  See  also  the  decision  in  the 
case  of  Lapsley  v.  Brashears,  4  Littell  47,  given  by 
the  Court  of  Appeals  on  October  11,  1823. 

^*  The  Reorganizing  Act  was  approved  on  December 
24,  1824.— See  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1824-1825,  p.  44. 
A  few  days  later  an  act  was  approved  increasing  the 
salary  of  the  Judges  of  the  Court  of  Appeals  to 
$2000.— Law^s  of  Kentucky,  1824-1825,  p.  107. 

^'  The  records  of  the  New  Court  are  contained  in  a 
volume  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-two  pages  containing 
one  hundred  and  sixty-one  decisions. — Mackoy's  The 
Old  and  New  Court  Struggle  in  The  Lawyers  and 
Lawmakers  of  Kentucky. 

^«  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  IX,  No.  428, 
March  12,  1825.  The  most  extensive  files  of  Ken- 
tucky newspapers  of  the  early  period  now  in  existence 
are  in  the  private  library  of  Colonel  Reuben  T.  Dur- 
rett  of  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

"  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1826-1827,  p.  13. 


216  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

CHAPTEE  VI 

^«  The  Eagle  (Maysville),  November  10,  1824.  The 
most  complete  files  of  this  paper,  as  of  the  Commenta- 
tor referred  to  above,  are  in  the  private  library  of 
Colonel  Reuben  T.  Durrett  of  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

'^  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1824-1825,  p.  25. 

^^  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  197. 

®^  Mr.  Barry  took  the  oath  of  office  as  Secretary  of 
State  on  September  2,  1824. — See  Executive  Journal 
of  Governor  Joseph  Desha,  1824-1825,  in  the  State 
House  at  Frankfort,  Kentucky. 

*^  The  election  of  Mr.  Rowan  as  Senator  occurred 
on  November  5,  1824. — See  Executive  Journal  of  Gov- 
ernor Joseph  Desha,  1824-1825. 

«3  Niles'  Register,  Vol.  XXV,  pp.  275,  276,  January 
3,  1824. 

«*  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  IX,  No.  423. 
February  5,  1825. 

^^  Among  the  rare  volumes  in  the  private  library  of 
Colonel  Reuben  T.  Durrett  of  Louisville,  Kentucky, 
is  a  book  of  about  two  hundred  twenty  pages  entitled 
A  Statement  of  the  Trial  of  Isaac  B.  Desha.  It  was 
compiled  by  Robert  S.  Thomas  and  George  "W.  Wil- 
liams and  published  in  1825.  The  indictment,  the 
testimony  of  the  witnesses,  the  speeches  of  four  of  the 
attorneys,  and  the  procedure  in  the  first  trial  are 
contained  herein  and  form  the  most  valuable  source 
of  information  for  the  present  chapter. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  217 

*®  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statemeiit  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  31. 

*^  This  name  is  spelled  variously  as  Elismon,  Eliz- 
bon,  and  Elisbon. 

««  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  IX,  No.  423, 
February  5,  1825. 

®®  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  pp.  160-177. 

"®  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  161. 

®^  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  162. 

®^  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  162. 

•*  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  pp.  178-196. 

•*  Thomas  and  Williams 's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  181. 

®*  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  181. 

••  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  197. 

®^  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  197. 

®®  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  p.  198. 

"®  Thomas  and  Williams's  A  Statement  of  the  Trial 
of  Isaac  B.  Desha,  pp.  214,  215. 

!<><»  The  Eagle  (Maysville),  February  9,  1825. 


218  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

"1  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  IX,  No.  431, 
April  2,  1825. 

^<^2  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  IX,  No.  443, 
June  25,  1825.  This  paper  estimated  the  monthly 
cost  of  keeping  and  guarding  the  prisoner  at  two  hun- 
dred dollars. 

^^^  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  September  17, 
1825. 

i«*T/ie  Commentator  (Frankfort),  October  1,  1825. 
This  issue  contains  the  following  item  in  regard  to 
the  Deshas: 

This  family  hangs  heavily  upon  the  Treasury  —  the  father 
draws  2000  as  his  salary  —  the  son-in-law  draws  1000  as  sec- 
retary of  state  —  and  Isaac  B.  the  son,  in  less  than  one  year, 
has  cost  the  Commonwealth  $3000,  as  a  culprit  arraigned  un- 
der the  charge  of  a  small  offense  of  murder,  of  assassinating  an 
innocent  and  unarmed  traveller.  Long  will  the  people  of  Ken- 
tucky remember  the  reign  of  JOSEPH  I. 

10^  The  Maysville  Eagle,  June  14,  1826. 

i««  The  Maysville  Eagle,  July  12,  1826. 

i«^  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1824-1825,  p.  25.  The  action 
of  Judge  Brown  in  this  case  received  much  adverse 
comment,  and  the  next  legislature  discussed  the  ques- 
tion of  subjecting  his  conduct  to  an  official  investiga- 
tion.— See  Journals  of  House  and  Senate,  1826-1827, 
passim, 

i«8  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  XI,  No.  71, 
June  30,  1827. 

'""^The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  XI,  No.  71, 
June  30,  1827. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  219 

"«  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  XI,  No.  71, 
June  30,  1827. 

"^T^e  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  XII,  No. 
139,  October  18,  1828. 

CHAPTER  VII 

"2  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  VII,  No.  39,  August 
8,  1827. 

"»  The  Maysville  Eagle,  December  26,  1827. 

"*  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  VIII,  No.  30,  June  4, 
1828. 

"**  The  official  returns  made  by  the  Sheriffs  of  the 
various  counties  gave  Metcalfe  a  majority  of  only 
709  votes  in  a  total  of  over  77,000.  Underwood,  who 
was  the  candidate  of  the  National  Republicans  for 
Lieutenant  Governor,  was  defeated  by  the  Democratic 
candidate,  Breathitt,  by  a  majority  of  slightly  over 
1000  votes. —  See  The  Maysville  Eagle  for  August 
27,  1828. 

"•  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  VIII,  No.  40,  August 
13,  1828. 

"^Shaler's  Kentucky,  pp.  185,  186. 

"®  The  vacancy  on  the  Supreme  Court  bench  was 
caused  by  the  death  of  Robert  Trimble  and  was  filled 
through  the  appointment  of  John  McLean  by  Presi- 
dent Jackson. 

"®  Coleman's  Life  of  John  J.  Crittenden,  Vol.  I,  p. 
79. 


220  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^2°  Manuscript  letter  from  Mrs.  Hannah  T.  Cham- 
bers to  John  Chambers,  December  15,  1828. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  Mrs.  Hannah  T.  Cham- 
bers to  John  Chambers,  February  3,  1829. 

122  Manuscript  letter  from  Mrs.  Hannah  T.  Cham- 
bers to  John  Chambers,  December  19,  1828. 

123  In  the  Annals  of  Iowa  for  July,  1871,  Vol.  IX, 
p.  553,  there  appears  an  excellent  sketch  of  Governor 
Chambers  written  but  not  signed  by  his  oldest  son, 
Joseph  Sprigg  Chambers.  It  is  based  largely  upon 
the  Autobiography,  but  contains  much  that  came  from 
personal  knowledge.  In  the  sketch  the  writer  tells  of 
the  introduction  by  Chambers  in  Congress  of  a  bill 
granting  a  pension  to  General  Simon  Kenton,  the 
famous  Kentucky  pioneer,  and  of  his  father's  speech 
in  favor  of  the  bill  which  secured  its  passage ;  and  he 
goes  on  to  recount  an  affecting  scene  in  Chambers's 
law  office,  when  Kenton,  having  walked  all  the  way 
from  his  home  on  the  Mad  River  in  Ohio,  came  to 
thank  his  friend  for  his  service.  The  incident  is 
probably  based  on  fact,  but  the  forty  years  interven- 
ing perhaps  dimmed  the  writer's  memory  somewhat, 
for  the  bill  which  granted  twenty  dollars  a  month  as 
a  pension  for  Simon  Kenton  was  approved  on  May 
28,  1830,  at  a  session  when  Chambers  was  not  a  mem- 
ber of  Congress. —  See  United  States  Statutes  at 
Large,  Vol.  VI,  p.  434.  It  is  probable  that  Chambers, 
who  had  known  Kenton  well,  was  instrumental  in  a 
private  way  in  securing  the  pension. 

12*  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  X,  No.  37,  July  20, 
1830. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  221 

^^'^  Nelson  *s  Presidential  Influence  on  the  Policy  of 
Internal  Improvements  in  The  Iowa  Journal  of  His- 
tory and  Politics,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  40,  41,  January,  1906. 

Hulbert's  Historic  Highways  of  America,  Vol.  XI. 
pp.  167-174.  The  veto  message  of  President  Jackson 
was  dated  May  27,  1830,  and  is  found  in  Richardson's 
Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  Vol.  II,  pp. 
483-493.  This  attitude  had  a  very  considerable  in- 
fluence in  alienating  the  affections  of  the  people  of 
Kentucky  from  Andrew  Jackson  and  building  up  the 
popularity  of  Henry  Clay. 

^2«  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XI,  No.  6,  December 
15,  1830. 

"^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1830-1831,  p.  136.  The  date  of  the  adoption 
of  this  resolution  was  December  29,  1830. 

^^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1830-1831,  p.  156.  The  report  occupies  a  lit- 
tle more  than  eight  pages  of  the  Journal. 

»"  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XI,  No.  10,  January 
11.  1831. 

"«  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XI,  No.  11,  January 
18,  1831. 

"»  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1830-1831,  p.  117. 

^"  Statute  Laws  of  Kentucky,  Vol.  V,  p.  295. 

"^r/ie  Commentator  (Frankfort),  Vol.  XV,  No. 
300,  November  15,  1831. 

^^*  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1830-1831,  p.  237. 


222  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^^^  The  Commentator  (Frankfort),  January  18, 
1831. 

^3«  The  Maysville  Eagle,  August  9,  1831. 

^^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1831,  p.  280. 

^^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1831,  p.  65. 

i«»  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XII,  No.  6,  December 
13,  1831. 

^^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1831,  p.  108. 

^*i  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XII,  No.  6,  December 
13,  1831. 

^*^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1831,  passim.  See  also  The  Commentator 
(Frankfort),  November  29,  1831. 

^*^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  (Ken- 
tucky), 1831,  p.  241.  The  final  vote  in  the  House  was 
taken  on  December  15,  1831. 

^**  Laws  of  Kentucky,  1832-1833,  p.  258.  The  law 
was  approved  February  2,  1833. 

^*^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  23.  Cham- 
bers was  also  very  active  in  local  politics  at  this  time. 
He  was  appointed  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee  of 
Correspondence  for  the  Second  Congressional  District 
in  December,  1831,  and  appointed  as  a  delegate  to 
the  Cincinnati  Tariff  Convention.  In  the  fall  of  the 
year  1832  he  served  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee  of 
Vigilance  for  Mason  County. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  223 

^^'^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  41;  and 
also  The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XIII,  No.  2,  November 
15,  1832. 

^*^  It  is  evident  from  his  letters  to  his  family  during 
these  years  that  his  law  practice  was  very  extended, 
necessitating  his  attendance  at  the  courts  of  Mason, 
Bracken,  Fleming,  Lewis,  and  other  counties. 

^*®  Lucretia  Chambers,  the  youngest  child,  was  born 
March  14,  1830,  and  died  on  the  fifth  of  March,  1836. 
—  See  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  41. 

**"  The  oldest  daughter  of  John  and  Hannah  Cham- 
bers, Margaret  Taylor  Chambers,  had,  in  1826,  mar- 
ried Hugh  Innis  Brent  of  Paris,  Bourbon  County, 
who  was  a  brother  of  Charles  Scott  Brent. 

*''®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Mrs. 
Matilda  Chambers  Brent,  February  21,  1835. 

CHAPTEB  Vni 

*"*  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  23.  Cham-- 
bers  here  places  his  resignation  in  April,  but  his  mem- 
ory is  evidently  at  fault. —  See  also  The  Maysville 
Eagle,  February  26,  March  5,  and  March  26,  1835. 
The  issue  for  March  26  said:  **We  speak  the  feel- 
ings of  the  bar  here,  and  we  believe  of  the  country 
generally,  when  we  express  a  regret  that  Mr.  Cham- 
bers declines  taking  a  seat  upon  the  bench  of  the 
Supreme  Court.  It  was  a  station  where  he  could  and 
would  have  been  eminently  useful  —  bringing  to  the 
decision  of  litigated  cases  a  strong  and  clear  judg- 
ment, extensive  legal  knowledge  and  a  strictly  impar- 
tial temper." 


224  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^^^  The  first  announcement  of  his  candidacy  appears 
in  The  Maysville  Eagle  for  April  16,  1835. —  See  also 
the  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  23. 

153  rpjjg  j^g^  named  of  these  candidates,  Adam  Beat- 
ty,  lived  a  long  life  in  Mason  County,  holding  many 
positions  of  public  honor.  In  his  last  years  Chambers 
writes  affectionately  of  his  old  friend  Adam  Beatty. 

^'*  Williams  expressed  himself  as  in  favor  of  the 
Bank  of  the  United  States,  but  stated  that  he  was  not 
in  favor  of  a  re-charter  but  a  charter  of  another  simi- 
lar bank,  fearing  that  if  a  re-charter  were  granted 
*'the  Bank  would  take  it  as  a  triumph  over  the  gov- 
ernment, and  would  be  likely  to  run  into  the  very 
practices  with  which  she  has  been  charged  by  the  Ad- 
ministration. ' ' —  See  The  Maysville  Eagle  for  May^ 
June,  and  July,  1835. 

155  rpjjg  2g^g|.  election  returns,  reported  in  The  Mays- 
ville Eagle  for  August  13,  1835,  gave  Chambers  1148 
votes  in  Mason  County  against  274  for  Tanner;  while 
in  the  entire  district  the  vote  was  3155  for  Chambers 
and  1365  for  Tanner. 

1^^  At  a  celebration  of  the  Battle  of  Tippecanoe 
held  at  Paris,  Kentucky,  on  November  7,  1835,  Cham- 
bers delivered  a  speech  in  praise  of  General  Harrison 
and  closed  with  the  following  toast :  '*The  memory  of 
the  brave  Kentuckians  —  who  fell  in  battle  in  the  late 
war  —  History  has  recorded  their  gallant  deeds,  but 
the  State  owes  a  monument  of  marble  to  their  mem- 
ory."— The  Maysville  Eagle,  Vol.  XVI,  No.  2,  Novem- 
ber 18,  1835. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  225 

*^^  Richardson 's  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presi- 
dents, Vol.  Ill,  pp.  97-101.  The  message  alluded  to 
was  the  regular  annual  message  of  December  1,  1834. 
The  diplomatic  correspondence  may  be  found  very 
largely  in  the  documents  sent  to  Congress  during  the 
last  session  of  the  Twenty-third  Congress  and  the 
first  session  of  the  Twenty-fourth  Congress  and  pub- 
lished in  the  above  volume  of  Richardson's  Messages 
and  Papers  of  the  Presidents. 

^^^  Journal  of  the  Rouse  of  Representatives,  1835- 
1836,  Twenty-fourth  Congress,  First  Session,  p.  165. 

"•  The  explanation  of  the  attitude  of  Chambers  up- 
on this  resolution  is  given  in  an  extract,  published  in 
The  Maysville  Eagle  for  February  6,  1836,  from  a  let- 
ter of  Chambers.  With  respect  to  the  anticipated  war 
he  remarked :  *  *  There  is,  and  will  be  a  sad  shrinkage, 
in  the  ranks  of  our  party  on  the  war  question;  for 
myself  I  have  no  fears  about  it;  if  a  war  becomes 
inevitable,  I  shall  go  as  far,  in  support  of  it,  as  others 
who  will  be  more  ready  to  rush  into  it." 

****  Richardson  *s  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presi- 
dents, Vol.  Ill,  p.  188.  This  message  is  dated  Janu- 
ary 15,  1836. 

^•*  The  Congressional  Globe,  Twenty-fourth  Con- 
f^ress,  First  Session,  1835-1836,  pp.  196,  204,  238. 

"*  The  Maysville  Eagle,  March  16.  1836.  The  ac- 
count of  the  first  speech  of  Chambers  against  the  bill 
is  quoted  from  the  Paris  Citizen.  The  same  issue  of 
the  Eagle  contains  an  account  of  a  second  speech  de- 
livered on  March  8,  1836. 

15 


226  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

/®^  Henry  A.  Wise  was  for  many  years  an  active  and 
very  intense  Representative  from  the  State  of  Vir- 
ginia. Upon  his  appearance  in  the  House  the  follow- 
ing comment  is  made  by  John  Quincy  Adams  in  his 
Diary:  **He  is  coming  forward  as  a  successor  of 
John  Randolph,  with  his  tartness,  his  bitterness,  his 
malignity  and  his  inconsistencies. ' '  —  Memoirs  of 
John  Quincy  Adams,  Vol.  IX,  p.  88. 

^^*  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Lucre- 
tia  Stull,  April  3,  1836,  found  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Hannah  Chambers  Forman  of  Chicago.  Lucre- 
tia  Stull  was  at  this  time  on  a  visit  at  Cedar  Hill. 
She  was  a  daughter  of  0.  H.  W.  Stull,  Secretary  of 
the  Territory  of  Iowa  during  the  first  part  of  the  ad- 
ministration of  Governor  Chambers.  O.  H.  W.  Stull 
had  married  Letitia  Sprigg  Hall,  a  half  sister  of  Han- 
nah Taylor,  the  second  wife  of  John  Chambers.  Han- 
nah Taylor  had  also  two  full  sisters  —  Jane,  who  mar- 
ried Judge  Samuel  Treat,  and  Lucretia,  who  married 
Arthur  Fox  of  Mason  County.— See  Bowie's  The 
Bowies  and  their  Kindred,  pp.  51,  52. 

^^'^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Lu- 
cretia Stull,  April  3,  1836,  found  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Hannah  Chambers  Forman  of  Chicago. 

^^^  The  first  announcement  of  the  candidacy  of 
Chambers  for  reelection  appeared  in  The  Maysville 
Eagle  for  March  15,  1837.  A  little  over  a  month  later 
a  call  appeared  signed  ''Many  Voters*',  requesting 
Thomas  Metcalfe  to  become  a  candidate.  Metcalfe 
replied  in  a  lengthy  communication  in  which  he  de- 
clined to  oppose  the  candidacy  of  Chambers.    The  fol- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  227 

lowing  quotation  from  his  remarks  illustrates  the 
change  of  attitude  of  the  Southern  Whigs  toward 
John  Quiney  Adams  by  reason  of  his  espousal  of  the 
right  of  petition : 

Led  on,  by  the  man  no  longer  a  patriot  in  fact,  whatever  he 
may  be  in  design,  who  but  recently  filled  with  my  most  cordial 
approbation  the  first  ofiice  in  the  world  (and  filled  it  nobly 
and  patriotically  too)  the  mock  philanthropists  of  the  North 
(unless  they  are  frowned  into  silence  by  the  virtuous  and 
patriotic  portion  of  the  North  itself)  will  never  resist  [desist] 
from  their  diabolical  assaults,  until  with  one  heart  and  one 
mind  we  repel  their  wicked  intermedling  with  the  institutions 
of  the  South — institutions  which  they  have  no  moral  or  con 
stitutional  right  to  disturb, —  See  The  MaysvUle  Eagle  (semi 
weekly),  May  3,  1837. 

^•^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty- 
fifth  Congress,  First  Session,  September-October, 
1837,  passim. 

^^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  Ill, 
No.  4,  November  15,  1837. 

^""  The  Congressional  Globe,  Twenty-fifth  Congress, 
First  Session.  September-October,  1837,  p.  141. 

"**  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly).  Vol.  II,  No. 
207,  October  28,  1837. 

"*  See  above  p.  69. — Coleman's  Life  of  John  J. 
Crittenden,  Vol.  I,  p.  79. 

'^*  This  speech  was  delivered  at  Washington,  Ken- 
tucky, on  November  13,  1837,  and  is  reported  in  The 
Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly).  Vol.  Ill,  No.  4,  No- 
vember 15,  1837. 

*^'  The  Pincknev  resolutions  were  three  in  number. 


228  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

and  were  voted  upon  separately.     They  were  as  fol- 
lows: 

1.  Resolved,  That  Congress  possesses  no  constitutional 
authority  to  interfere,  in  any  way,  with  the  institution  of 
slavery  in  any  of  the  States  of  this  confederacy. 

2.  Resolved,  That  Congress  ought  not  to  interfere,  in  any 
way,  with  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

3.  Resolved,  That  all  petitions,  memorials,  resolutions, 
propositions,  or  papers,  relating  in  any  way  or  to  any  extent 
whatever  to  the  subject  of  slavery,  or  the  abolition  of  slavery, 
shall,  without  being  either  printed  or  referred,  be  laid  upon  the 
table,  and  that  no  further  action  whatever  shall  be  had  thereon. 

The  first  resolution  passed  the  House  on  May  25, 
1836,  by  a  vote  of  182  to  9.  The  second  and  third 
were  passed  on  the  day  following  with  votes,  respec- 
tively, of  132  to  45  and  117  to  68.  In  none  of  three 
cases  did  John  Chambers  cast  a  vote. — See  Journal 
of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty-fourth  Congress, 
First  Session,  1835-1836,  pp.  876,  881,  884. 

1^*  One  of  the  most  remarkable  commentaries  upon 
American  politics  is  the  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy 
Adams.  This  work  comprises  portions  of  his  diary 
from  1795  to  1848  and  is  full  of  the  most  valuable 
material  throwing  light  on  American  history  and 
biography. 

"^"^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty- 
fourth  Congress,  First  Session,  1835-1836,  p.  884. 

Journal  of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty-fourth 
Congress,  Second  Session,  1836-1837,  p.  236. 

Journal  of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty-fifth 
Congress,  Second  Session,  1837-1838,  p.  129. 

Journal  of  House  of  Representatives,  Twenty-fifth 
Congress,  Third  Session,  1838-1839,  p.  70. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  229 

^^®  This  attitude  is  clearly  shown  in  the  remarks  of 
Southern  members  on  December  12,  1838,  when  the 
resolutions  known  as  the  Atherton  Gag  were  passed. 
The  resolutions  were  introduced  by  Charles  G.  Ather- 
ton of  New  Hampshire.  The  first  four  declared  that 
Congress  had  no  jurisdiction  over  slavery  in  the  several 
States;  that  the  petitions  for  the  abolition  of  slavery 
in  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  Territories  was  a 
part  of  a  plan  to  affect  the  institution  in  the  States, 
that  the  agitation  of  the  subject  of  slavery  in  the 
District  of  Columbia  or  the  Territories  was  an  in- 
fringement of  the  rights  of  the  States  and  a  breach 
of  the  public  faith;  and  that  Congress  had  no  right 
to  discriminate  between  the  institutions  of  the  vari- 
ous portions  of  the  Union.  The  fifth  resolution  de- 
clared that  all  attempts  by  Congress  to  abolish  slavery 
in  the  District  of  Columbia  or  the  Territories  were  in 
violation  of  the  constitution  and  closed  with  the  pro- 
vision that  all  petitions  or  papers  relating  in  any  way 
to  slavery  should  be  laid  upon  the  table  without  be- 
ing debated,  printed,  or  referred. 

The  resolutions  were  divided  and  passed  in  eight 
sections.  Chambers  voted  for  six  out  of  the  eight. 
On  the  last  vote,  which  concerned  the  tabling  of  peti- 
tions, a  number  of  Southern  members  balked.  Wise 
of  Virginia  denounced  the  entire  series,  declaring  that 
they  were  not  Southern  measures.  Upon  the  last 
proposition  he  stated  that  since  it  admitted  the  right 
of  petition  on  that  subject,  he  should  refuse  to  vote 
for  it.  Mr.  Jenifer  of  Maryland  inquired  if  the  af- 
firmation of  the  last  proposition  would  not  be  identical 
with  a  virtual  reception  of  all  petitions  on  the  aboli- 


230  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

tion  of  slavery  by  the  House.  He  was  told  by  Speaker 
Polk  that  each  gentleman  must  interpret  for  himself. 
Mr.  Pope  of  Kentucky,  who  had  voted  for  the  first 
seven  propositions  asked  to  be  excused  from  voting  on 
the  eighth  on  the  ground  that  he  did  not  wish  to  af- 
firm the  reception  of  abolition  petitions,  and  further, 
that  it  was  inconsistent  with  the  previous  propositions. 
Any  vote  he  could  give,  he  said,  would  be  miscon- 
strued. ''On  similar  grounds  to  those  of  his  col- 
league", says  the  Congressional  Glohe,  Chambers  also 
wished  to  be  excused.  The  motions  were  refused,  but 
none  of  these  men  voted. —  See  Congressional  Glohe, 
Twenty-fifth  Congress.  Third  Session,  1838-1839,  pp. 
22,  23,  25,  26;  and  Journal  of  House  of  Bepresenta- 
fives,  Twenty-fifth  Congress,  Third  Session,  1838- 
1839,  pp.  53-71. 

In  a  speech  on  a  bill  for  civil  and  diplomatic  ap- 
propriations, Mr.  Pope  digressed  until  called  to  order 
in  an  explanation  of  his  views  in  favor  of  denying  the 
right  of  petition  on  the  subject  of  slavery. —  Congres- 
sional Glohe,  Twenty-fifth  Congress,  Third  Session, 
1838-1839,  Appendix,  p.  345. 

*^^  Birney's  James  G.  Birney  and  his  Times,  pp.  166, 
167,  432. 

1^®  Niles'  Register  for  November  24,  1838,  contains 
a  letter  from  Mahan  to  Governor  Vance  dated  at 
Washington,  Kentucky,  on  October  4,  1838,  in  which 
he  speaks  of  his  imprisonment  at  that  place  loaded 
with  irons  awaiting  the  time  of  trial.  He  denies  hav- 
ing expressed  any  disapprobation  of  the  action  of 
Governor  Vance,  but  declares  himself  innocent  of  the 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  231 

crime  charged,  not  having  been  in  Mason  County  for 
nineteen  years. 

*"  Birney's  James  G.  Birney  and  his  Times,  p.  340. 
The  MaysviUe  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  Ill,  No.  98, 
October  10,  1838.  See  also  in  The  Works  of  Henry 
Clay  (Colton,  Reid,  McKinley  edition),  Vol,  IV,  p. 
430,  a  letter  from  Henry  Clay  to  Francis  Brooke, 
November  3,  1838. 

*®®  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly).  Vol.  IV,  No. 
6,  November  21,  1838.  This  issue  contains  a  good  ac- 
count of  the  trial.  It  is  made  more  widely  accessible 
by  being  copied  in  Niles'  Register  for  December  1, 
1838.  Other  mentions  of  the  case  are  found  in  the 
issues  of  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  for  Oc- 
tober and  November  and  in  Niles*  Register ,  Vol.  LV, 
pp.  114,  164,  195. 

"^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly).  Vol.  IV,  No. 
6,  November  21,  1838.  William  Henry  Smith  in  his 
Political  History  of  Slavery,  Vol.  I,  p.  44,  states  that 
*'the  testimony  against  him  related  merely  to  acts 
done  in  Ohio,  and  was  given  by  a  single  witness  of 
disreputable  character,  who  admitted  on  cross  exami- 
nation that  he  had  practiced  a  system  of  gross  decep- 
tion.*' 

"^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  IV,  No. 
6,  November  21,  1838. 

^"  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  VI,  No. 
5,  November  21,  1840.  As  a  result,  perhaps,  of  alarm 
felt  in  Kentucky  over  such  instances  as  the  Mahan 
case,  James  T.  Morehead  and  J.  Speed  Smith  were 


232  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

sent  by  the  State  of  Kentucky  to  Ohio  for  the  purpose 
of  procuring  the  passage  of  laws  by  the  legislature  of 
that  State  for  the  prevention  of  interference  with  the 
slave  property  of  Kentucky  by  "evil  disposed  par- 
ties" in  Ohio.  Their  mission  undertaken  in  the  early 
months  of  1839  was  reported  as  successful,  a  satis- 
factory law  having  passed  the  Ohio  legislature. —  The 
Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  February  9,  1839, 
and  March  2,  1839. 

"^^^  Journal  of  Bouse  of  Representatives,  Twenty- 
fifth  Congress,  Third  Session,  1838-1839,  p.  42. 

^^^  Quoted  in  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly), 
Vol.  IV,  No.  33,  February  23,  1839. 

186  rpjjg  Green  River  Gazette,  quoted  in  The  Mays- 
ville Eagle,  Vol.  XIX,  No.  38,  July  24,  1839. 

OHAPTEE  IX 

1*^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  IV,  No. 
21,  January  12,  1839. —  See  also  the  Autobiography 
of  John  Chambers,  p.  23. 

^^^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  July  10, 
August  28,  and  September  11,  1839.  At  the  State 
Convention  at  Lexington  on  August  12,  1839,  a  State 
Silk  Society  was  organized  and  a  constitution  drawn 
up.  Chambers  was  appointed  as  chairman  of  a  com- 
mittee of  eight  to  bring  before  the  State  legislature  at 
its  next  session  a  memorial  urging  the  advantages  of 
silk  culture  and  asking  State  patronage  in  the  way 
of  bounties  and  protective  laws. 

^»»  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly).  Vol.  IV,  No. 
63,  June  8,  1839. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  233 

^»«  The  Maysville  Eagle  (weekly),  Vol.  XIX,  No.  38, 
July  24,  1839. 

^®^  The  State  Convention  met  at  Harrodsburg  on 
August  26,  1839,  with  Thomas  Metcalfe  as  President. 
Francis  T.  Chambers  was  a  delegate  from  Mason 
County.  The  only  two  names  balloted  upon  were 
Robert  P.  Letcher  and  William  Owsley,  the  vote  being 
48  to  26  in  favor  of  the  former. —  The  Maysville 
Eagle  (semi  weekly),  September  4,  1839. 

^^^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  IV, 
No.  81,  August  10,  1839. 

^•*  In  a  speech  delivered  in  February,  1839,  in  the 
United  States  Senate  he  supported  a  petition  against 
the  abolition  of  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  attacked  the  abolition  movement  with  considerable 
vigor. —  See  Schurz's  Henry  Clay,  Vol.  II,  pp.  165- 
169. 

^®*  The  so-called  National  Convention  of  the  Anti- 
Masonic  party  met  at  Philadelphia  in  November,  1838. 
and  nominated  Harrison   and  Webster. 

*""  The  National  Convention  of  the  Whig  party 
opened  on  December  4,  1839,  at  Harrisburg,  Pennsyl- 
vania. For  reasons  of  expediency  it  abandoned  Henry 
Clay  and  nominated  William  Henry  Harrison  and 
John  Tyler. 

"®  This  remark  seems  to  have  been  made  by  a  friend 
of  Clay  in  conmienting  on  the  Harrisburg  Convention 
and  found  its  way  to  fame  through  the  columns  of 
the  Baltimore  Republican. 

^•^  The  descendants  of  Governor  Chambers  tell  of 


234  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

a  cut  glass  decanter  which  was  presented  by  Henry 
Clay  to  John  Chambers  as  a  token  of  their  friendship. 

^^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  23.  Even 
as  early  as  1816  Harrison  had  found  faithful  support 
in  matters  of  political  import  from  his  aids.  In 
April  of  that  year  C.  S.  Todd  wrote  to  Harrison  in 
regard  to  the  latter 's  candidacy  for  Congress  and 
mentions  writing  to  Butler,  Chambers,  and  Smith, 
conformably  to  the  request  of  Harrison,  asking  them 
for  statements  as  to  their  General's  conduct  at  the 
Battle  of  the  Thames. —  See  Manuscript  letters  from 
C.  S.  Todd  to  William  Henry  Harrison,  April  23  and 
April  25,  1816. — Draper  Mss.  5  X,  Library  of  State 
Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin. 

1^^  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  V,  No. 
39,  March  18,  1840. 

200  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  V,  No. 
41,  March  25,  1840. 

201  This  meeting  was  held  on  March  23,  1840.  Seven 
clubs  were  represented. —  See  The  Maysville  Eagle 
(semi  weekly).  Vol.  V,  No.  41,  March  25,  1840. 

202  A  detailed  account  of  this  celebration  is  most 
graphically  given  in  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi 
weekly)  for  April  15,  1840.  It  is  perhaps  a  fair  sam- 
ple of  the  hundreds  of  Harrison  celebrations  held 
throughout  the  country  but  most  pronounced  in  the 
West,  where  liquor  flowed  more  freely  than  logic 
and  more  attention  was  paid  to  the  needs  of  the 
stomach  of  the  individual  voter  than  to  the  needs  of 
the  country  at  large. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  235 

208  fff^Q  MaysvUle  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  V,  No. 
92,  September  23,  1840.  The  reports  of  this  celebra- 
tion were  in  the  form  of  letters  sent  by  Lewis  Collins, 
the  editor,  who  attended  the  meeting  in  Ohio. 

20*  Niles'  Register,  Vol.  LIX,  p.  56,  September  26, 
1840. 

205  The  MaysvUle  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  V,  No. 
95,  October  3,  1840.  At  this  celebration  at  Ripley, 
Francis  Taylor,  the  brother-in-law  of  John  Chambers, 
is  reported  to  have  presided  and  to  have  entertained 
General  Harrison. —  Notes  in  possession  of  Harry 
Brent  Mackoy  of  Covington,  Kentucky. 

*<*«  The  MaysvUle  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  V,  No. 
100,  October  21,  1840. 

CHAPTEE  XI 

*®^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  24. 

"*  Letter  from  John  J.  Crittenden  to  R.  P.  Letcher, 
February  9,  1841. — See  Coleman's  Life  of  John  J. 
Crittenden,  Vol.  I,  pp.  143,  144. 

-•*"  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy  Adams,  Vol.  X,  p.  416. 

***  John  Quincy  Adams  mentions  the  announcement 
of  cabinet  appointments  as  early  as  February  12,  1841. 

2"  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy  Adams,  Vol.  X,  p.  439. 

2**  Richardson's  Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presi- 
dents, Vol.  IV,  pp.  5-21. 

^"McMaster's  History  of  the  People  of  the  United 
States,  Vol.  VI,  p.  600.  From  a  letter  written  by 
Chambers  to  Crittenden  on  December  27,  1841,  it  ap- 


236  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

pears  that  other  changes  were  proposed  by  Webster 
which  were  not  made,  and  that  Webster  and  Cham- 
bers were  involved  in  a  somewhat  bitter  altercation 
as  a  result  thereof. 

I  have  repeatedly  thought  of  writing  to  Mr.  Ewing  to  ask 
him  to  bear  in  recollection  a  conversation  between  that  man 
[Webster]  and  myself  at  which  he  was  present,  but  it  was  too 
marked  and  the  language  too  strong  to  have  been  forgotten, 
it  rea[l]ated  to  the  proposed  change  or  rather  grew  out  of  the 
proposed  change  of  the  Inaugural  address.  If  he  had  been  a 
man  of  the  high  toned  feeling  which  became  the  station  he  was 
about  to  take  he  could  not  have  accepted  it  after  the  language 
he  used  on  the  occasion  alluded  to  —  his  subsequent  conduct 
proved  to  me  that  he  deeply  resented  the  rebuff  he  received  and 
the  necessity  he  was  under  of  retracting  his  expressions,  while 
he  must  have  felt  conscious  that  his  manner  shewed  anything 
but  honest  regret  for  what  he  had  said. 

21*  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  VI,  No. 
41,  March  27,  1841. 

215  rpj^g  duties  of  private  secretary  were  performed 
with  the  understanding  that  he  was  not  to  be  formally 
appointed  or  known  as  such. —  See  Autobiography  of 
John  Chambers,  pji.  24,  25. 

21^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  24.  Cham- 
bers here  makes  the  statement  that  he  was  urged  by 
some  of  the  cabinet  not  to  accept  the  post  in  Iowa, 
but  to  remain  in  Washington,  D.  C.  ''But"  says 
Chambers,  * '  I  had  upon  very  mature  reflection  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  personal  friend  &  confident  of 
a  President  was  by  no  means  so  enviable  a  position 
as  was  generally  supposed,  and  that  the  very  reputa- 
tion of  occupying  it  was  the  certain  means  of  creating 
unceasing  &  inveterate  vituperation  &  slander."     It 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  237 

is  not  improbable  that  the  pressure  from  Cabinet  mem- 
bers upon  Chambers  to  remain  at  the  Capital  city 
arose  from  a  desire  to  place  some  other  party  in  the 
position  in  Iowa.  Niles'  Register  for  April  3,  1841, 
quotes  the  following  from  the  National  Intelligencer: 
Col.  John  Chambers,  of  Kentucky,  it  will  be  perceived,  is 
officially  announced  as  being  appointed  by  the  president  to  be 
governor  of  the  territory  of  Iowa.  It  is  understood  that  the 
president  tendered  to  him  an  office  of  greater  emolument  at 
the  seat  of  the  general  government,  but  he  preferred  the  sta- 
tion to  which  he  is  appointed. 

2*^  According  to  the  Organic  Law  of  the  Territory 
of  Iowa,  he  was  to  be  paid  $1500  as  Governor  of  the 
Territory  and  $1000  additional  as  Superintendent  of 
Indian  Affairs. 

*^^  Bloomington  [Iowa]  Herald,  Vol.  I,  No.  23, 
April  2,  1841.  These  candidates  were  Philip  Viele 
and  Joseph  C.  Hawkins. 

^^""Hawk-Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot,  Vol.  II,  No.  40, 
March  4,  1841;  Bloomington  Herald,  Vol.  I,  No.  23. 
April  2,  1841. 

^^"^  Bloomington  Herald,  Vol.  I,  No.  29,  May  14, 
1841.  The  story  concercing  Webster's  candidate  is 
quoted  from  the  New  Hampshire  Patriot,  published 
by  Isaac  Hill.  The  item  also  states  that  the  nomina- 
tion was  tabled  by  the  Senate  at  the  instigation  of 
Daniel  Webster.  This  may  be  the  biased  version  due 
to  the  partisan  gulf  that  separated  Isaac  Hill  and 
Daniel  Webster.  A  few  months  later  General  James 
Wilson  was  appointed  Surveyor  General  of  Iowa  and 
Wisconsin. —  See  The  Miners^  Express  (Dubuque), 
Vol.  I,  No.  8,  September  25,  1841. 


238  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^-^  Letter  from  John  J.  Crittenden  to  Orlando 
Brown,  January  17,  1841. —  Coleman  ^s  Life  of  John 
J.  Crittenden,  Vol.  I,  pp.  138,  139. 

222  Letter  from  John  J.  Crittenden  to  R.  P.  Letcher, 
February  9,  1841. —  Coleman's  Life  of  John  J.  Crit- 
tenden, Vol.  I,  pp.  143,  144. 

223  Manuscript  letter  from  Orlando  Brown  to  John 
J.  Crittenden,  January  29,  1841.  This  letter  is  among 
the  Crittenden  manuscripts  in  the  Manuscript  De- 
partment of  the  Library  of  Congress,  Washington, 
D.  C. 

Orlando  Brown  was  the  son  of  John  Brown,  who 
represented  the  district  of  Kentucky  in  the  Virginia 
legislature,  served  in  the  Congress  of  the  Confedera- 
tion in  1787  and  1788  and  in  the  First  and  Second 
Congresses  under  the  Constitution,  and  was  for  many 
years  United  States  Senator  from  Kentucky. 

224  Manuscript  letter  from  R.  P.  Letcher  to  John 
J.  Crittenden,  February  26,  1841.  This  letter  is 
among  the  Crittenden  Manuscripts  in  the  Manuscript 
Department  of  the  Library  of  Congress,  Washington, 
D.  C. 

225  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy  Adams,  Vol.  X,  p.  444. 

22«  Letter  from  John  J.  Crittenden  to  R.  P.  Letcher, 
March  14,  1841. —  Coleman's  Life  of  John  J.  Critten- 
den, Vol.  I,  p.  150. 

22^  There  have  been  carefully  preserved  four  com- 
missions issued  to  John  Chambers  as  Governor  of  the 
Territory  of  Iowa.  The  first  is  dated  March  25,  1841. 
It  is  signed  by  Harrison  and  declared  in  force  until 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  239 

the  end  of  the  next  session  of  Congress.  The  second 
was  issued  by  John  Tyler  on  July  15,  1841,  for  a 
term  of  three  years.  On  the  second  of  July,  1844, 
John  Tyler  issued  a  new  commission  to  extend  to  the 
close  of  the  next  session  of  Congress.  December  23, 
1844,  he  renewed  the  commission  for  a  term  of  three 
years.  The  appointments  were  in  all  cases,  however, 
subject  to  termination  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Presi- 
dent and  in  1845  President  Polk  removed  Governor 
Chambers  and  appointed  a  Democrat  in  his  place. 

^^®  Report  of  attending  and  consulting  physicians, 
April  4,  1841. —  Richardson's  Messages  and  Papers  of 
the  Presidents,  Vol.  IV,  p.  31. 

**•  Memoirs  of  John  Quincy  Adams,  Vol.  X,  pp.  454, 
455. 

2»®  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  25. 
*"  See  note  164. 

2"  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  VI,  No. 
48,  April  21,  1841. 

*"  The  Maysville  Eagle  (semi  weekly),  Vol.  VI,  No. 
52,  May  5,  1841. 

CHAPTER  X 

^^* Hawk-Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot  (Burlington),  Vol. 
II,  No.  51,  Thursday,  May  20,  1841. 

"» Parish's  Robert  Lucas,  pp.  168,  194,  209,  210, 
214. 

^^^ Hawk-Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot  (Burlington),  Vol. 
II,  No.  51,  Thursday,  May  20,  1841. 


240  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^^"^  Hawk-Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot  (Burlington),  Yol. 
II,  No.  51,  Thursday,  May  20,  1841. 

2^^  Manuscript  letter  to  Jesse  Williams,  May  13, 
1840  [1841]  signed  ''The  last  half  of  the  firm".  This 
letter  is  among  the  unbound  Jesse  Williams  manu- 
scripts in  the  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines, 
Iowa.  The  writer  of  this  letter  comments:  ''The 
Gov.  I  think  is  a  pretty  decent  old  fellow,  and  will 
manage  things  well  enough  if  the  Whigs  will  but 
leave  him  alone."  The  negroes  who  are  here  men- 
tioned were  probably  Uncle  Cassius,  a  dignified  old 
body  servant,  and  "Gary"  Bennett,  a  young  darkey 
whose  mother  had  been  a  slave  in  the  family.  It  is 
likely  that  Governor  Chambers  upon  his  arrival  in 
Iowa  gave  them  their  freedom.  Miss  Mary  Cham- 
bers, of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  who  accompanied  her 
father  Joseph  Sprigg  Chambers  to  Iowa  in  the  spring 
of  1842,  says  that  Gary  remained  in  the  Territory 
when  the  Governor  returned  to  Kentucky;  while 
Uncle  Cassius  moved  back,  doubtless  because  of  af- 
fection for  his  old  master. 

2^^  As  early  as  the  time  of  Desha's  trial  he  com- 
plained of  ill  health.  In  1835  he  refused  for  this 
reason  a  position  on  the  Court  of  Appeals;  and  his 
letters  during  the  last  dozen  years  of  his  life  give 
abundant  indication  that  he  suffered  greatly  at  times. 

2'^o  The  statements  as  to  the  height  of  John  Cham- 
bers, given  by  those  who  knew  him  vary  with  a  great- 
ness that  is  but  an  indication  of  the  frailty  of  human 
memory.  Some  have  said  that  he  was  a  man  of  about 
six  feet  in  height.     William  Penn  Clarke,  who  knew 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  241 

him  in  Iowa,  limits  him  to  five  feet,  five  inches,  while 
Alfred  Hebard  described  him  as  of  medium  height. 

-*'  Letter  from  Samuel  W.  Durham  to  William 
Penn  Clarke,  February  14,  1894,  printed  in  darkens 
Governor  John  Chambers  in  the  Annals  of  Iowa 
(Third  Series),  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  p.  444,  July,  1894. 

**^  Almost  the  only  letters  of  John  Chambers  (with 
the  exception  of  those  written  as  Superintendent  of 
Indian  Affairs  for  the  Territory  of  Iowa)  of  which 
the  writer  has  knowledge  are  family  letters,  mostly 
written  to  and  from  his  children  and  bearing  dates 
from  1828  to  1852.  These  letters  have  been  preserved 
by  various  of  the  descendants  and  are  invaluable  in 
giving  an  insight  into  the  domestic  nature  and  habits 
of  Chambers.  It  is  evident  from  the  letters  from  his 
children  that  his  fondness  for  them  was  returned  by 
strong  affection  on  their  part. 

^**  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  40,  41. 

***  The  fact  that  Chambers  took  none  of  his  children 
with  him  on  the  journey  to  Iowa  in  1841  is  abundant- 
ly proved  by  the  letters  written  by  various  members 
of  the  family  in  the  years  1841  and  1842.  In  nu- 
merous instances  the  letters  close  with  a  message  of 
*Move  to  our  dear  father.  Aunt,  uncle  and  cousins'* 
or  similar  greeting  —  referring  of  course  to  the  StuU 
family.  But  in  none  of  the  letters  prior  to  his  visit 
to  Kentucky  in  the  spring  of  1842  is  there  a  message 
sent  to  any  brother  or  sister,  a  rather  strong  evidence 
if  none  other  existed,  that  there  was  no  brother  or 
sister  in  Iowa  at  that  time.  However,  specific  refer- 
ences in  letters  to  each  of  ten  living  sons  and  daugh- 
16 


242  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

ters  prove  them  all  to  have  been  in  Kentucky  during 
the  first  year  of  the  administration  of  Governor  Cham- 
bers. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  to  Jesse  Williams,  May  13. 
1840  [18411,  cited  above,  note  238. 

2*^  Shambaugh 's  Executive  Journal  of  Iowa,  1838- 
1841,  p.  278. 

2*^  Manuscript  letter  to  Jesse  Williams,  May  13, 
1840  [1841],  cited  above,  note  238. 

^**  Governor  Lucas,  upon  receipt  of  Webster's  letter, 
answered  expressing  his  surprise  that  he  had  not  re- 
ceived any  notice  from  Washington  during  the  months 
intervening  since  the  appointment  of  his  successor 
and  that  he  had  received  no  communication  from  Gov- 
ernor Chambers.  This  letter  is  printed  in  Sham- 
baugh's  Executive  Journal  of  Iowa,  1838-1841,  pp. 
277-279. 

2"  See  above,  note  213. 

250  rpjj-g  yersion  is  told  in  the  New  Hampshire  Pa- 
triot and  quoted  in  the  Bloomington  [Iowa]  Herald, 
Vol.  I,  No.  29,  May  14,  1841.    See  above,  note  220. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  John 
J.  Crittenden,  December  27,  1841. —  Crittenden  Manu- 
scripts, Manuscript  Department,  Library  of  Congress, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

2^2  This  building  is  still  standing  in  good  condition 
and  is  generally  known  as  the  Old  Stone  Capitol.  It 
is  used  by  The  State  University  of  Iowa,  largely  as  an 
administration  building.     The  corner  stone  was  laid 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  243 

in  1840,  upon  which  occasion  an  address  was  deliv- 
ered by  Governor  Robert  Lucas. 

268  This  proclamation  is  given  in  Shambaugh  's  Ex- 
ecutive Journal  of  Iowa,  1838-1841,  p.  275.  It  created 
considerable  comment  in  the  Territory,  being  attacked 
fiercely  by  the  Whig  press  as  premature  and  without 
authority  since  Chambers  had  already  received  his 
commission.  The  latter  argument  at  least  was  with- 
out basis  since  it  was  unquestionably  the  duty  of 
Lucas  to  act  as  Governor  until  the  arrival  of  his  suc- 
cessor. The  wisdom  of  the  proclamation  is  perhaps 
open  to  question. 

*"*  Manuscript  letter  from  Bernhart  Henn  to  Jesse 
Williams,  June  20,  1841.  —  Jesse  Williams  Manu- 
scripts, Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

*^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  John 
J.  Crittenden,  December  27,  1841. —  Crittenden  Manu- 
scripts, Manuscript  Department,  Library  of  Congress, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

CHAPTER  XII 

**•  Organic  Act  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  sections  2 
and  11. 

*"  Iowa  Standard  (Iowa  City),  Vol.  I,  No.  29,  June 
10,  1841.  This  paper,  a  Whig  sheet,  reports  the  meet- 
ing of  the  Democratic  convention  and  upholds  the 
leaders  who  had  received  the  denunciation  of  the 
Democrats. 

^^*  This  feeling  was  less  a  spirit  of  partisanship  than 
a  result  of  local  pride  and  ambition.     It  was  in  evi- 


244  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

dence  at  various  times  during  the  administrations  of 
both  Lucas  and  Chambers. 

259  rpj^g  discussion  of  this  dispute  is  perhaps  taken 
up  most  exhaustively  in  Pelzer's  Augustus  Caesar 
Dodge  and  Parishes  Robert  Lucas.  More  brief  ac- 
counts are  given  in  various  issues  of  the  Annals  of 
Iowa  and  the  Iowa  Historical  Record  and  in  other 
historical  works  dealing  with  the  history  of  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Iowa. 

2«o  Parish's  Robert  Lucas,  pp.  245,  246. 

^^^  The  letter  from  Reynolds  to  Chambers,  dated 
November  10,  1841,  and  the  reply  written  ten  days 
later  were  submitted  to  the  legislature  in  connection 
with  his  first  annual  message.  Chambers  made  no 
recommendation  in  regard  to  the  matter  and  no  action 
was  taken. —  See  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Procla- 
mations of  the  Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  257-261. 

^^^  This  building  was  erected  by  Walter  Butler  at 
his  own  expense  with  the  understanding  that  he  was 
to  be  reimbursed  by  the  citizens  of  Iowa  City.  It  was 
occupied  until  the  Stone  Capitol  was  ready  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  legislature,  but  the  public  spirit- 
ed Mr.  Butler  is  said  never  to  have  received  compen- 
sation for  his  outlay. 

^^^  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  251. 

^^^ Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa  (extra  session), 
July,  1840,  p.  46. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  J.  J. 
Crittenden,  December  27,   1841. —  Crittenden  Manu- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  245 

scripts,  Manuscript  Department,  Library  of  Congress, 
Washington,  D.  C, 

*««  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  1841-1842,  p.  70. 

**^  The  best  discussion  of  the  entire  movement  to- 
ward Statehood  is  given  in  Shambaugh^s  History  of 
the  Constitutions  of  Iowa. 

***  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  289,  290. 

^^^  The  appointee  of  the  legislature  to  this  proposed 
office  seems  to  have  been  Walter  Butler,  who  had  pro- 
vided the  temporary  building  for  the  use  of  the  leg- 
islature at  this  session. —  See  the  Iowa  Standard,  Vol. 
II,  No.  11,  February  12,  1842. 

^^®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  J.  J. 
Crittenden,  December  27,  1841. —  Crittenden  Manu- 
scripts, Manuscript  Department,  Library  of  Congress, 
Washington,  D.  C. 

*^^  Manuscript  letters  from  John  Chambers  to  John 

C.  Spencer,  February  1,  1842,  and  from  John  Cham- 
bers to  T.  Hartley  Crawford,  March  19,  1842.—  Manu- 
script volumes  of  letters  of  Governors  of  Territory  of 
Iowa  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des 
Moines,  Iowa.  The  law  required  the  Superintendents 
of  Indian  Affairs  to  procure  sanction  from  the  United 
States  government  for  all  absences. 

*"  Manuscript  letter  from  Acting  Governor  StuU 
to  T.  Hartley  Crawford,  April  2,  1842,  Office  of  In- 
dian Affairs,  Department  of  the  Interior,  Washington, 

D.  C. 

2^'  Several  letters  by  Stull  are  on  file  in  the  Office 


246  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

of  Indian  Affairs,  Department  of  the  Interior,  Wash- 
ington, D.  C. 

^^*  The  date  of  the  return  of  Chambers  is  unknown, 
but  there  is  on  file  in  the  Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  De- 
partment of  the  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C,  a  letter 
written  by  Chambers  at  Burlington,  on  May  13,  1842. 

^^^  It  is  possible  that  Mary  and  Laura  Chambers 
also  accompanied  their  father  at  this  time.  This  had 
been  the  plan,  and  for  several  months  they  had  been 
looking  forward  to  it  with  considerable  eagerness. 
However,  it  seems  more  probable  that  John  James 
and  Henry,  who  had  not  hitherto  planned  to  go,  were 
taken  in  their  place  and  that  they  came  out  at  some 
later  time.  It  is  certain  from  the  family  letters,  which 
give  fragmentary  information  on  these  points,  that 
the  two  girls  were  in  Iowa  in  the  winter  of  1843  to 
1844. 

^^^  See  Hebard's  An  Indian  Treaty  and  its  Negotia- 
tion in  the  Annals  of  Iowa,  Third  Series,  Vol.  I,  No. 
5,  April,  1894,  p.  398. 

^'^^  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  262. 

^''^  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  266. 

^^^  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  268. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  John 
James  and  Henry  Chambers,  December  9,  1842,  found 
in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Henry  Chambers  of  Louis- 
ville, Kentucky. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  247 

'"  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  1842-1843,  p.  82. 

^®^  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p,  292. 

-*^  Manuscript  letter  from  M.  T,  Williams  to  Jesse 
Williams,  July  16,  1843. — Jesse  Williams  Manuscripts, 
Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

•^"  The  Davenport  Gazette,  Vol.  Ill,  No.  12,  Novem- 
ber 9,  1843. 

286  W'illiams  was  appointed  Secretary  of  the  Terri- 
tory in  1845  by  President  Polk  and  served  for  some 
time  before  the  removal  of  Governor  Chambers. 

^*®  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  271. 

"''  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  271. 

^*®  Journal  of  the  Council  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa, 
1843-1844,  pp.  46,  49. 

^'  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  275. 

^"°  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  John 
James  and  Henry  Chambers,  December  25,  1843, 
found  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Henry  Chambers, 
Louisville,  Kentucky. 

-"^  The  presence  of  Mary  and  Laura  at  Grouseland 
this  winter  is  indicated  by  the  letter  of  John  Cham- 
bers to  the  two  boys  on  Christmas  day,  written  from 
Iowa  City.  He  speaks  of  hearing  from  Mary  that 
the  boys  were  employing  the  long  winter  nights  in 
reading  and  study  and  he  closes  by  sending  love  to 
*'your  sisters  Mary  and  Laura." 


248  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

CHAPTEE  XIII 

^^^  An  excellent  treatment  of  the  proceedings  of 
this  convention  is  given  in  Shambaugh's  History  of 
the  Constitutions  of  Iowa,  pp.  175-227.  A  great  deal 
of  valuable  material  is  also  included  in  Shambaugh's 
Fragments  of  the  Debates  of  the  Iowa  Constitutional 
Conventions  of  1844  and  1846. 

^""^Hawk-Eye  (Burlington),  Vol.  VI,  No.  8,  July 
18,  1844. 

""^^Hawk-Eye  (Burlington),  Vol.  VI,  No.  8,  July 
18,  1844. 

^^^  Autobiography  of  Joh7i  Chambers,  p.  41.  John 
Chambers  after  the  record  of  his  death  writes :  ' '  Thus 
ended  one  of  the  most  amiable  noble  boys  of  his  race. ' ' 

2®®  Manuscript  letters  from  Matilda  Chambers  Brent 
to  John  Chambers,  November  9,  1844,  and  from  Laura 
Chambers  to  John  Chambers,  November  4,  1844, 
found  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Hannah  Chambers 
Forman  of  Chicago. 

^®^  This  manuscript  petition  is  in  a  miscellaneous, 
unbound  manuscript  collection  at  the  Historical  De- 
partment, Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

2^®  The  account  of  the  Missouri-Iowa  boundary  dis- 
pute, from  the  standpoint  of  its  consideration  in  Con- 
gress, is  well  told  in  Pelzer's  Augustus  Caesar  Dodge, 
Chapter  VI. 

^®®  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  V,  p.  677 

^^^  In  his  fourth  annual  message  to  the  Legislative 
Assembly  read  on  May  8,  1845,  Governor  Chambers 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  249 

discusses  the  incident  of  the  arrest  of  Linder  and 
Mullinix  and  the  situation  on  the  border  line,  and  ap- 
pends a  copy  of  the  letter  which  he  had  written  on 
April  19,  to  Governor  Edwards  of  Missouri. —  See 
Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the  Gov- 
ernors of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  278-288. 

*°^  Probably  the  greatest  political  blunder  in  the 
life  of  Augustus  Caesar  Dodge  was  his  open  let- 
ter advising  the  people  of  Iowa  to  accept  the  Nicol- 
let Boundaries  as  prescribed  by  Congress  and  assur- 
ing them  that  not  another  square  mile  of  territory 
could  be  obtained. —  See  Pelzer  's  Augustus  Caesar 
Dodge,  pp.  116-119. 

^°*  Among  the  prominent  Democrats  who  took  the 
stump  against  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution,  be- 
cause of  the  boundaries  prescribed  by  Congress,  were 
Theodore  S.  Parvin,  Enoch  W.  Eastman,  and  Shep- 
herd Lefifler  who  had  been  president  of  the  convention 
which  drew  it  up. 

*°*  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  pp.  279,  280. 

»«*  Constitution  of  1844,  Art.  XIII,  Sec.  6. 

««»  United  States  Statutes  at  Large,  Vol.  V,  p.  742. 

^®*  Laws  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  1845,  p.  31. 

^^^  Journal  of  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Iowa,  1845,  p.  167. 

*°®  Shambaugh 's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  296. 

*°®  This  story  is  told  in  a  sketch  entitled  Governor 


250  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

John  Chambers  written  by  William  Penn  Clarke  and 
published  in  the  Annals  of  Iowa,  Third  Series,  Vol. 
I,  No.  6,  July,  1894,  p.  425.  It  consists  largely  of  let- 
ters from  Chambers  to  Clarke,  the  remaining  material 
being  little  more  than  an  explanation  of  the  letters. 
The  letters  themselves  contain  valuable  information, 
but  the  accompanying  material  is  full  of  mistakes. 
One  of  the  letters  printed,  under  date  of  August  7, 
1850,  is  not  by  John  Chambers  as  it  purports,  but  by 
an  entirely  different  man,  named  M.  Chambers,  as  an 
examination  of  the  original  among  the  correspondence 
of  William  Penn  Clarke  in  the  Historical  Department 
at  Des  Moines  clearly  shows.  By  a  curious  mistake, 
too,  a  photograph,  probably  of  Judge  John  Chambers 
of  New  York  is  reproduced  in  this  article  as  a  like- 
ness of  Governor  John  Chambers  in  his  earlier  years. 
Clarke  seems  to  have  edited  the  letters  somewhat 
carelessly  and  to  have  relied  too  much  on  his  memory 
for  events  of  the  administration  of  Chambers. 

^^^  Shambaugh  's  History  of  the  Constitutions  of 
Iowa,  p.  283. 

^"  Manuscript  letters  from  Ralph  P.  Lowe  to  Wil- 
liam Penn  Clarke,  May  26,  1845,  and  from  Timothy 
Davis  to  William  Penn  Clarke. —  Correspondence  of 
William  Penn  Clarke,  Historical  Department,  Des 
Moines,  Iowa. 

^^2  Pelzer's  Augusttis  Caesar  Dodge,  pp.  121,  122. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  Mary  Chambers  to  John 
Chambers,  April  17,  1845,  found  in  possession  of  Mrs. 
Hannah  Chambers  Forman  of  Chicago. 

^^*  James  Clarke,  the  last  of  the  Territorial  Cover- 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  251 

nors,  was  born  in  Pennsylvania  and  migrated  from 
there  to  Missouri,  then  to  Wisconsin,  and  finally  to 
Burlington  before  the  Territory  of  Iowa  was  organ- 
ized. He  was,  therefore,  less  of  an  ''importation'' 
than  either  of  his  predecessors  in  office. 

***  This  letter  is  published  by  William  Penn  Clarke 
in  his  sketch  of  Governor  John  Chambers  in  the  An- 
nals of  Iowa,  Third  Series,  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  July,  1894, 
pp.  433,  434. 

^^*  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Wil- 
liam Penn  Clarke,  October  29,  1845. —  Correspondence 
of  William  Penn  Clarke,  Historical  Department,  Des 
Moines,  Iowa. 

*"  In  the  Family  Record  kept  by  John  Chambers, 
and  published  with  the  Autobiography  he  makes  the 
following  entry:  **Octr.  20th  1845  —  Removed  from 
office  by  President  Polk,  to  make  room  for  a  political 
partizan.  Let  it  be  remembered  that  this  removal 
from  office  was  made  without  the  imputation  of  im- 
proper conduct  or  of  neglect  of  duty,  or  other  cause 
assigned."  In  his  Autobiography  Chambers  asserts 
that  the  removal  probably  saved  his  life  since  his 
health  would  not  have  withstood  further  performance 
of  his  laborious  duties.  He  makes  the  following  com- 
ment upon  Polk:  '*I  knew  the  man  personally  —  he 
was  a  third  rate  statesman,  a  sprightly  county  court 
lawyer  and  an  unscrupulous  partizan. —  Peace  be  to 
his  ashes." — See  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers, 
pp.  38,  25. 

Back  in  the  thirties  when  Chambers  represented 
Kentucky  in  the  lower  house  of  Congress,  James  K. 


252  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Polk  was   Speaker  of  that  body  during  the   entire 
length  of  service  of  Chambers. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

^^^  The  sources  of  information  concerning  the  In- 
dians in  Iowa  are  numerous.  Of  the  manuscript  mate- 
rials the  most  valuable  are  of  course  at  Washington, 
D.  C,  in  the  Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  Department  of 
the  Interior.  Another  important  collection  is  at  the 
Historical  Department  at  Des  Moines,  Iowa,  where 
three  large  manuscript  volumes  contain  letters  writ- 
ten by  Governors  Lucas,  Chambers  and  Clarke  on  In- 
dian Affairs.  These  letters  were  secured  from  the 
records  at  Washington  and  do  not  include  by  any 
means  all  of  the  correspondence  of  these  officials  with 
the  United  States  government.  Of  the  office  record 
books  of  Governor  Chambers,  all  that  has  been  pre- 
served is  a  section  of  about  forty  pages  of  a  manu- 
script record  book  in  which  evidently  were  entered 
copies  of  letters  on  Indian  Affairs.  The  letters  in 
this  section  are  dated  from  May  5  to  July  11,  1845. 
There  was  found,  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Henry 
Chambers  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  a  series  of  vouch- 
ers and  statements  of  accounts  kept  by  John  Cham- 
bers with  regard  to  Indian  negotiations.  These  give 
some  helpful  incidental  information.  In  the  Archives 
of  the  Offices  of  Governor  and  Secretary  of  State  at 
Des  Moines,  Iowa,  are  a  few  valuable  manuscripts  on 
Indian  Affairs.  The  newspapers  of  the  time  con- 
tained some  material.  Access  was  had  to  a  collection 
of  extracts  from  Territorial  newspapers  compiled  by 
Professor  Benj.  F.  Shambaugh  in  preparation  for  a 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  253 

documentary  history  of  political  parties  in  Iowa.  In- 
formation is  to  be  gleaned  from  the  official  reports  of 
the  Office  of  Indian  Affairs  of  the  United  States  gov- 
ernment, from  Executive  Documents,  Richardson's 
Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  Kappler's  In- 
dian Affairs,  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclama- 
tions of  the  Governors  of  Iowa,  and  from  the  Laws 
and  Journals  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa. 

Of  a  secondary  nature,  Fulton's  The  Bed  Men  of 
Iowa  is  the  most  extensive  treatment.  Articles  and 
monographs  of  varying  importance  are  to  be  found  in 
the  Annals  of  Iowa,  in  the  Iowa  Historical  Record, 
in  the  Iowa  Journal  of  History  and  Politics,  in  the 
Minnesota  Historical  Society  Publications,  and  in 
many  other  publications  of  the  Upper  Mississippi 
Valley. 

'**Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
250. 

"^Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
305. 

•*^  Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  pp. 
345,  498. 

»"  Stevens's  The  Black  Hawk  War.  Also  Life  of 
Black  Hawk  (dictated  by  himself). 

"'Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
349. 


826 

474. 


Fulton's  The  Red  Men  of  Iowa,  pp.  241,  242. 
Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 


254  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

"'^-"  Kappler 's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
495. 

^^^  General  Street  had  been  an  Indian  Agent  for  the 
United  States  government  since  1828  when  he  was 
located  at  Prairie  du  Chien.  He  located  the  Agency 
near  the  Des  Moines  Eiver  in  1838  and  moved  to  the 
new  location  in  the  spring  of  1839.  His  death  occur- 
red in  May  1840.  Previous  to  his  career  as  Indian 
Agent  he  had  been  prominent  as  an  editor  in  Ken- 
tucky.—  See  Street's  General  Joseph  M.  Street  in  the 
Annals  of  Iowa,  Third  Series,  Vol.  II,  No.  2-3,  July- 
October,  1895,  p.  81. 

^^^  See  Autobiography  of  Maj.  Lawrence  Taliaferro 
in  the  Collections  of  the  Minnesota  Historical  Society, 
Vol.  VI,  pp.  189-255. 

^-"  See  manuscript  letter  from  Stephen  Cooper  (In- 
dian sub-agent)  to  John  Chambers,  September  2,  1841. 
— Manuscript  Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical 
Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^^^  James  MacGregor  was  sub-agent  at  this  place 
for  some  time,  being  succeeded  by  Jonathan  E. 
Fletcher  in  1845.  A  number  of  letters  to  these  men 
are  copied  in  the  fragment  of  the  record  book  of  Gov- 
ernor Chambers,  mentioned  in  note  318.  See  also 
Price's  The  Conquest  of  Sodom  in  the  Annals  of  Iowa, 
Vol.  VIII,  No.  4,  October  1870,  p.  309. 

^^^  Chittenden 's  The  American  Fur  Trade  of  the 
Far  West,  Vol.  I,  pp.  382-384.  See  also  Fulton's  The 
Red  Men  of  Iowa,  pp.  358-360. 

3«2  Fulton's  The  Red  Men  of  Iowa,  pp.  359-360. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  255 

^•^3  Fulton's  The  Red  Men  of  Iowa,  pp.  359-360.  Mr. 
Eddy  appears  to  have  moved  over  from  Burlington 
and  engaged  in  the  trading  business  with  the  hearty 
concurrence  of  Governor  Lucas.  His  post  was  situat- 
ed at  the  ''upper  village"  where  Hardfish's  band 
lived. 

^**  Annual  report  of  Robert  Lucas,  Superintendent 
of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  government, 
October  23,  1840 — Manuscript  Volume  on  Indian  Af- 
fairs, Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa.  See 
also  Hawk-Eye  and  Iowa  Patriot  (Burlington),  Vol. 
I,  No.  35,  January  30,  1840. 

**"  Annual  report  of  Robert  Lucas,  Superintendent 
of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  government, 
October  23,  1840.  —  Manuscript  Volumes  on  Indian 
Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 
The  petition  of  Keokuk's  band  was  signed  by  503 
persons.  Lucas  had  an  interpreter  confer  with  the 
Indians  and  ascertained  that  in  356  cases  out  of  the 
503  the  signatures  were  spurious  or  made  in  ignorance 
of  the  contents  of  the  petition,  or  were  affixed  by 
women,  children,  or  Missourians.  A  census  was  taken 
in  the  summer  of  1840  by  direction  of  Hardfish  and 
the  chiefs  of  his  band.  The  result  was  an  enumera- 
tion of  a  little  over  350  families,  listed  by  name  and 
giving  the  number  in  each  family.  It  included  both 
Sac  and  Fox  Indians  but  excluded  the  lodges  of  the 
followers  of  Keokuk,  Poweshiek,  Wapello,  and  Appa- 
noose. A  copy  of  this  enumeration  is  found  among 
the  Archives  of  the  Office  of  Secretary  of  State,  Des 
Moines,  Iowa. 


256  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^^®  Shambaugh  's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  149. 

^^^  Annual  report  of  Robert  Lucas,  Superintendent 
of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  government, 
October  23,  1840. —  Manuscript  Volumes  on  Indian 
Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^^^  Annual  report  of  Robert  Lucas,  Superintendent 
of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  government, 
October  23,  1840. — Manuscript  Volumes  on  Indian 
Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  Robert  Lucas  to  T.  Hart- 
ley Crawford,  February  18,  1841,  Office  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs, Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^'^^  Manuscript  letters  from  John  Beach  to  T.  Hart- 
ley Crawford,  February  2  and  19,  1841,  Office  of  In- 
dian Affairs,  Department  of  the  Interior,  Washing- 
ton, D.  C. 

^*^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  John 
Bell,  May  17,  1841,  Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  Depart- 
ment of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^*2  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  May  24,  1841,  Office  of  Indian 
Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^"^^  The  vouchers  of  Governor  Chambers  for  the  ex- 
penses of  this  trip  are  to  be  found  in  a  collection  of 
financial  letters  and  accounts  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Henry  Chambers  of  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

^**  See  manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to 
T.  Hartley  Crawford,  July  27,  1841,  Office  of  Indian 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  257 

Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 
Chambers  enclosed  with  this  letter  the  letter  from 
Beach  and  the  proceedings  of  the  council  with  the 
Indians. 

^^'^  See  manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  D. 
Kurtz,  Acting  Commissioner  of  Indian  Affairs,  Sep- 
tember 25,  1841. —  Manuscript  Volumes  on  Indian  Af- 
fairs, Historical  Department,  Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

***  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  October  24,  1841,  Office  of  Indian 
Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^*^  The  minutes  of  this  negotiation  were  kept  by 
James  W.  Grimes,  Secretary  of  the  Commission,  and 
are  preserved  in  the  Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  Depart- 
ment of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

'**  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  October  24,  1841,  Office  of  Indian 
Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

**•  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  254. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Beach  to  John 
Chambers,  February  26,  1842,  Office  of  Indian  Affairs, 
Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

^'^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  March  12,  1842,  Office  of  Indian 
Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C. 

*'^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  May  13,  1842,  Office  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs,  Department   of   Interior,   Washington,    D.   C. 

17 


258  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

Chambers  enclosed  with  his  letter  the  statement  from 
Beach  which  showed  the  firm  of  Pierre  Chouteau  Jr. 
and  Company  to  be  a  creditor  for  over  $87,000,  while 
the  debts  due  J.  P.  Eddy  and  Company  and  W.  G. 
and  G.  W.  Ewing  amounted  respectively  to  a  little 
more  than  $50,000  and  a  little  less  than  $72,000. 

^^^  Manuscript  letters  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  July  16  and  23,  1842,  Office  of 
Indian  Affairs,  Department  of  Interior,  Washington, 
D.  C. 

^'^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  September  17,  1842. —  Manuscript 
Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  September  17,  1842. —  Manuscript 
Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

2^^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  September  17,  1842. —  Manuscript 
Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^"  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  ' '  To  the 
Officer  commanding  at  Fort  Atkinson  Iowa  Terri- 
tory", September  16,  1842. —  Manuscript  Volumes  on 
Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines, 
Iowa. 

^^^  The  detailed  report  of  the  investigating  agents 
was  transmitted  to  Commissioner  Crawford  by  Cham- 
bers together  with  a  letter  dated  November  22,  1842. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  259 

It  is  on  file  in  the  Office  of  Indian  Affairs,  Department 
of  Interior,  Washington,  D.  C.  The  report  contains 
an  interesting  discussion  of  the  most  noteworthy  of 
the  claims  and  a  schedule  showing  the  sums  claimed 
and  allowed  in  each  individual  case.  The  traders  who 
received  the  most  severe  censure  were  Peter  and  Wil- 
liam Avery  whose  claim  of  $6284.73  was  repudiated 
by  the  Indians  and  rejected  entirely.  The  investi- 
gating agents  were  of  the  opinion  also  from  the  ex- 
amination of  witnesses  that  these  men  had  also  sold 
liquor  to  the  Indians.  They  had  built  their  trading 
house  upon  the  line  of  the  Indian  country  and  were 
trading  without  a  license. 

*^®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  February  24,  1843. — Manuscript 
Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department. 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

*®**An  excellent  article  on  the  Treaty  of  1842  is 
written  by  Alfred  Hebard  who,  as  investigating  agent 
of  the  traders'  claims,  was  of  course  present  at  the 
negotiations.  It  appears  under  the  title  An  Indian 
Treaty  and  its  Negotiation  in  the  Annals  of  Iowa. 
Third  Series,  Vol.  I,  No.  5,  April,  1894,  p.  397. 

^«^Kappler's  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
546. 

3**2  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  265. 

8«3  Revised  Statutes  of  the  Territory  of  Iowa,  1843, 
p.  292. 

»«*  Hawk-Eye,  Vol.  V,  No.  1,  August  10, 1843. 


260  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

865  These  Indians  located  upon  lands  in  what  is  now 
Kansas,  but  they  were  not  satisfied.  Many  sickened 
and  died.  Others,  homesick  for  their  haunts  on  the 
rivers  of  Iowa,  trailed  back  to  the  State  of  Iowa  in  the 
fifties  and  purchased  land  upon  which  they  settled. 
The  Meskwaki  Indians  living  in  Tama  County  are  a 
remnant  of  the  Foxes  who  drifted  back  from  the 
southwest  to  the  land  of  their  early  home. —  See 
Ward's  Meskwakia  and  The  Meskwaki  People  of  To- 
day in  the  Iowa  Journal  of  History  and  Politics  for 
April,  1906,  pp.  179-189  and  190-219. 

366  Hughes 's  Treaties  of  Traverse  des  Sioux  in  the 
Collections  of  the  Minnesota  Historical  Society,  Vol. 
X,  Part  I,  pp.  101-129.  In  the  latter  part  of  this  ar- 
ticle are  reprinted  several  valuable  newspaper  com- 
ments upon  the  treaty  negotiated  by  Governor  Doty, 
among  others  being  one  from  the  Burlington  Hawk- 
Eye. 

^^^  See  a  communication  to  President  Polk  from 
John  Bell,  Secretary  of  War,  printed  in  Richardson's 
Messages  and  Papers  of  the  Presidents,  Vol.  IV,  pp. 
59-63. 

^^^  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  272.  See  also  the  Auto- 
biography of  John  Chamhers,  p.  38. 

^^^  Shambaugh's  Messages  and  Proclamations  of  the 
Governors  of  Iowa,  Vol.  I,  p.  284. 

^^^  Annual  report  of  John  Chambers,  Superintend- 
ent of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, September  28,  1845. —  Manuscript  Volumes  on 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  26l 

Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines, 
Iowa. 

^^^Kappler*s  Indian  Affairs,  Vol.  II  (Treaties),  p. 
565. 

^"Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  T. 
Hartley  Crawford,  February  24,  1843. —  Manuscript 
Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

®^®  Annual  report  of  John  Chambers,  Superintend- 
ent of  Indian  Affairs,  to  the  United  States  govern- 
ment, September  27,  1843. —  Manuscript  Volumes  on 
Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Department,  Des  Moines, 
Iowa.  ' 

^^*  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Au- 
gustus Caesar  Dodge,  February  26,  1844. —  Manu- 
script Volumes  on  Indian  Affairs,  Historical  Depart- 
ment, Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

CHAPTEE  XV 

»"  The  Maysville  Eagle  (tri  weekly),  Vol.  XI,  No. 
10,  November  22,  1845. 

^^®  Clarke 's  Governor  John  Chambers  in  Annals  of 
Iowa,  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  July,  1894,  p.  436. 

^^^  Clarke's  Governor  John  Chambers  in  Annals  of 
Iowa,  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  July,  1894,  p.  437. 

^^®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Wil- 
liam Penn  Clarke,  June  19,  1845  [6]. —  Correspond- 
ence of  William  Penn  Clarke,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa.  See  also  Niles'  Register,  Vol.  70,  pi 
312,  July  18,  1846. 


262  JOHN  CHAMBERS 

^'^^  Clarke  *s  Governor  John  Chambers  in  Annals  of 
Iowa,  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  July,  1894,  p.  439. 

^®°  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Wil- 
liam Penn  Clarke,  June  19,  1845  [6]. —  Correspond- 
ence of  William  Penn  Clarke,  Historical  Department, 
Des  Moines,  Iowa. 

^®^  Clarke 's  Governor  John  Chambers  in  Annals  of 
Iowa,  Vol.  I,  No.  6,  July,  1894,  p.  439. 

3«2  The  Maysville  Eagle  (tri  weekly),  Vol.  XII,  No. 
48,  February  20,  1847. 

383  These  letters  were  found  in  the  possession  of 
Mrs.  Henry  Chambers  of  Louisville,  Kentucky. 

^^*  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Henry 
Chambers,  April  19,  1849. 

^^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  40,  41. 

^*®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Henry 
Chambers,  September  11,  1849. 

^®''  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Frank 
Chambers,  October  1,  1849,  found  in  possession  of 
Mrs.  Henry  Chambers  of  Louisville,  Kentucky.  Also 
manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Henry 
Chambers,  October  8,  1849. 

^®®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Mrs. 
Matilda  Chambers  Brent,  October  28,  1850,  found  in 
the  possession  of  Mrs.  F.  F.  Woodall. 

^^®  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Mrs. 
Jane  Chambers  Forman,  December  16,  1835,  found  in 
the  possession  of  Mrs.  H.  C.  Forman  of  Chicago. 


NOTES  AND  REFERENCES  263 

^^°  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Henry 
Chambers,  May  11,  1851. 

^®^  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Mrs. 
Jane  Chambers  Forman,  June  19,  1851,  found  in 
possession  of  Mrs.  H.  C.  Forman  of  Chicago. 

^®*  Manuscript  letter  from  John  Chambers  to  Henry 
Chambers,  December  5,  1851. 

^^^  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  pp.  viii,  ix. 

***  Autobiography  of  John  Chambers,  p.  41. 


INDEX 


266 


INDEX 


Abolitionists,  in  campaign  of  1840, 
97 

Absalom,  David's  grief  for,  56 

Acheson,   Frederick,   arrest  of,   149 

Adair  County    (Missouri),    148 

Adams,  John  Quincy,  candidacy  of, 
for  President,  65;  toasts  to,  66; 
defeat  of,  in  Kentucky,  68;  man- 
ner of,  69;  opposition  of,  to  re- 
jection of  slavery  petitions,  88, 
89;  quotation  from,  226;  change 
of  feeling  toward,  227;  Memoira 
of,  228 

Adrien,  Monsieur,  sleight  of  hand 
performance  of.    111 

Agencv  City  (Iowa),  site  of  early 
Indian   agencv,    166 

Algonquin  family,  tribes  of,  162, 
163 

AUeghanies,  98 

Allen,  Chilton,  in  legislature,  80; 
prominent  in  Anti-Relief  Party, 
45 

Allen,    John,    208 

Allen,  William,  arraignment  of,  by 
Chambers,    104 

American  Fur  Companv.  167,  170, 
171 

American   Nation,   story  of,    1 

Annuities,  payment  of,  to  Indians, 
169.    170,    173,    174,    175 

Anti-Masons,  support  of,  96,  97; 
nominations  of,  in  campaign  of 
1838,    233 

Anti-Relief  Party,  composition  of, 
44,   45 

Antrim  County    (Ulster,    Ireland),  2 

Appanoose,  annuities  paid  to,  169; 
proposes  cession  of  land,  178; 
reference  to,  255 

Arkansas,   slavery  in,   86 

Armstrong,  John,  212 

Atherton,   Charles  G.,   229 

Atherton   gag,   passage  of,    229 

Atlantic  Ocean,    1,  2 

Augusta  (Kentucky),  removal  of 
Rowland  Chambers  to,  15 ;  refer- 
ence to,   17 

Autobiography  of  John  Chambers, 
quotations  from,  14,  19;  writing 
of,   201,   202,   205 

Avery,  William  and  Peter,  claim  of, 
as  Indian  creditors,  259 


Badger,  O.  E.,  appointment  of,  as 
Secretary   of  the   Navy,    107 

Baker,  Francis,  murder  of,  48; 
friends  and  relatives  of,  50,  52, 
60;  evidence  concerning,  51; 
body    of,    discovered,    52 

Ball,  Elismon,  evidence  concerning, 
in  Desha  trial,  51;  body  of  Baker 
found  by,  52 ;  testimony  of,  im- 
peached,   56 ;    death   of,    62 

Ball,  Milton,  evidence  concerning,  in 
Desha  trial,  51;  body  of  Baker 
found  by,  52 ;  testimony  of,  im- 
peached,  56 

Ballengall,  David,  removal  of,  from 
office,  30,  31 

Baltimore  Patriot,  quotation  from, 
92 

Bank  Act,   Independent,   41 

Bank  of  Kentucky,  notes  of,  41,  42 ; 
capital  stock  of,  42,  72 ;  accept- 
ance of  notes  by,  43;  reference 
to.   214 

Bank  of  the  Commonwealth  (Ken- 
tuckv),   organization  of,   42,   43 

Bank  of  the  United  States,  notes 
of,  41;  denunciation  of,  47;  ref- 
erence  to,    80,    214 

Barry,  William  T.,  prominent  in 
Relief  party,  44;  appointment  of, 
as  Chief  Justice  of  New  Court  of 
Appeals,  45 ;  appointment  of,  as 
Secretary  of  State  of  Kentucky, 
45,  46,  49;  counsel  in  Desha 
trial,  49 ;  prominence  of,  50 ;  ar- 
gument of.  in  Desha  trial,  52, 
53,  54;  gift  of  speech  of,  56; 
reply  of  Chambers  to,  57,  59;  not 
retained  in  second  Desha  trial, 
61;  Jackson  supported  by,  66; 
candidacy  of,  for  Governor,  66; 
defeat  of,  68;   reference  to,   118 

Bayley,  Mr.,  employed  in  second 
Desha  trial,    61 

Beach,  John,  appointment  of,  as 
Indian  Agent,  166.  170;  nego- 
tiations of,  with  Indians,  170, 
171;  correspondence  of,  172; 
council  held  by.  173 ;  Indians 
propose  land  cession  to.  178 ; 
shot  in  effigy,  179;  chiefs  assem- 
bled by.  181;  tent  for  council 
prepared  by,   183 

267 


268 


INDEX 


Beatty,  Adam,  law  cases  of,  22; 
Old  Court  defended  by,  46;  call 
upon,  for  candidacy,  67 ;  candi- 
dacy of,  for  Congress,  80 ;  friend- 
ship  of  Chambers  for,    224 

Bell,  John,  appointment  of,  as  Sec- 
retary of  War,  107;  letter  of 
Chambers  to,    171 

Bennett,  "Cary",  negro  belonging 
to   Chambers,   240 

Bennett,   Colonel,    118 

Bibb,  George  M.,  member  of  Relief 
Party,    44 

Big    Sandy   River.    11 

Big  Sioux  River,   164 

Black  Hawk,  early  home  of,  164; 
war  precipitated  by,  165 ;  sup- 
planted by  Keokuk,  166;  fac- 
tional spirit  outlives,  168;  sons 
of,    174 

Black  Hawk  Purchase,    165,    166 

Black    Hawk   War,    165,    168 

Blair,  Francis  P.,  secures  records 
of  Court  of  Appeals,  46;  Jackson 
supported  by,    66 

Blair  v.  Williams,   case  of,  215 

Bloomington  (Muscatine,  Iowa), 
Gregory    a   prisoner    at,    130 

Blue  Earth  River,    175 

Blue  Lick  hills,  25 

Boone,  Daniel,  time  of,  7;  Wilder- 
ness   Road    of,    10,    207 

Boundaries  of  Iowa,  129,  130,  140, 
147-152 

Bourbon    County    (Kentucky),    77 

Bowie,  Barbara,  209 

Boyle,  John,  Judge  of  Kentucky 
Court  of  Appeals,  43,   46 

Bracken   County    (Kentucky),    17 

Breathitt,   John,  vote  for,   219 

Brent,  Charles  Scott,  marriage  of, 
to  Matilda  Chambers,  77;  refer- 
ence to,   191,  228 

Brent,  Charles  S.,  Mrs.  (Matilda 
Chambers),  marriage  of,  77;  ref- 
erence to,  78;  death  of  daughter 
of,  198;  death  of  John  Chambers 
at  home  of,  202 

Brent,  Hugh  Innes,  191;  marriage 
of,    223 

Bridgman,  Arthur,  appointment  of, 
as   investigating   agent,    181 

Bromley  Bridge  (New  Jersey),  mills 
at,    4,    5 

Brooke,  Francis,  letter  of  Henry 
Clay  to,   231 

Brown,  Henry  O.,  grants  new  trial 
to  Desha,  62 ;  criticism  of  acts 
of,    218 

Brown,  John,  political  positions  of, 
238 

Brown,    Orlando,    candidacy   of,   for 


Governor  of  Iowa,  110-112;  let- 
ter of,   110,   111;  father  of.  288 

Brown,  William,  counsel  in  defense 
of  Desha,  50;  address  of,  52; 
employed  in  second  Desha  trial, 
61 

Brownson  and  Irvin,  Chambers 
clerks   in   store   of,    15 

Bruce,  Amos  J.,  Indian  Agent  in 
Iowa,  167;  Chambers  communi- 
cates with,   180 

Burlington  (Iowa),  Chambers  ar- 
rives at,  114,  115;  reference  to, 
122,  125,  135;  home  of  Cham- 
bers near,  186 ;  meeting  of 
Whigs  at,  144,  145 ;  reference 
to,    160,    171,    176,    191 

Burnt  Mills,   rise  of  name  of,    5 

Burr,  Samuel  J.,  appointment  of, 
as    Secretary,    189 

Butler,   Mr.,   284 

Butler,  Walter,  building  erected  by, 
244,    245 

Butler's  Capitol,  meeting  of  legisla- 
ture in,   181 

Cactus    River,    140 

Calhoun,  John  C,  distrust  of,  69, 
87;  presence  of,  at  Harrison  din- 
ner,  112 

Cambreleng,  C.  C,  speech  of,  88 

Cameron,    Scotch   clan    of,    2 

Camp    Seneca,    Harrison   at,    38,    34 

Canada,  invasion  of,  80;  escape  of 
slaves  to,   91 

Capitol.  Old  Stone,  at  Iowa  City, 
meeting  of  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion   in,    148 ;    reference   to,    242 

Carnegie   Institution,    officials  of,   xi 

Cassius,  Uncle,  comes  to  Iowa  with 
Chambers,    240 

Cedar  Hill,  home  of  Chambers  at, 
i,  24,  25.  26;  Mrs.  Chambers  at, 
70;  family  of  Chambers  at,  84; 
hospitality  at,  120;  reference  to, 
142 ;  John  Chambers  buried  near, 
202;    present    owner    of,    210 

Chambers,  Elizabeth,  migration  of, 
from   Ireland.   2 

Chambers,  Francis  Taylor,  assists 
in  defense  of  Mahan,  91;  speech 
of,  104;  John  Chambers  visits, 
197;  acts  as  delegate  to  State 
convention,    238 

Chambers,  Hannah  (Mrs.  John  W. 
Henry),  assumes  care  of  Cedar 
Hill,    78 

Chambers,  Henry,  son  of  John 
Chambers,  121;  coming  of,  to 
Iowa,  136,  246,  247;  at  Grouse- 
land,  142;  illness  of,  146;  let- 
ter of  John  Chambers  to,  196, 
199,    200     201;    Chambers  writes 


INDEX 


269 


autobiography    for,     201;     family 
of,    205 

Chambers,  Mrs.  Henry,  material 
loaned  by,  x;  acknowledgments 
to,  x;  autobiography  in  posses- 
sion of,  205 ;  miniatures  in  pos- 
session of,   210 

Chambers,  James,  birth  of,  2;  mar- 
riage of,  3 ;  settlement  of,  in 
Pennsylvania,   206 

Chambers,  Jane  (Mrs.  J.  S.  For- 
man),  letter  of  John  Chambers 
to,    198,   199,   201 

Chambers,  John,  administration  of, 
as  Governor,  vii;  portrait  of, 
frontispiece;  story  of,  i;  ancestry 
of,  2;  birth  of,  6;  early  years  of, 
13;  attends  Transylvania  Semin- 
ary, 14;  becomes  Deputy  Clerk, 
15,  16;  reads  in  Taylor's  library, 
17;  license  of,  to  practice  law, 
17,  208;  early  association  of, 
with  law,  18;  candidacy  of,  for 
new  clerkship,  19,  20,  21;  mar- 
riage of,  21,  209;  legal  success 
of,  22;  death  of  wife  of,  23;  sec- 
ond marriage  of,  24,  209;  home 
of,  at  Cedar  Hill,  24,  25,  26; 
miniature  of,  26;  rope  walk  of, 
26,  27,  210;  financial  embarrass- 
ment of,  27;  election  of,  to  legis- 
lature, 80;  committee  work  of,  30, 
31,  38;  becomes  aid  to  Harrison, 
33;  part  taken  by,  in  battle  of 
the  Thames,  36;  title  attached  to 
name  of,  37;  law  partners  of, 
38;  commissioned  as  Justice  of 
Peace,  89,  213;  appointed  Com- 
monwealth Attorney,  40;  defends 
Old  Court  Party,  46;  duties  of, 
as  Commonwealth  Attorney,  48; 
relieved  of  necessity  of  prosecut- 
ing Desha,  49 ;  agrees  to  aid 
prosecution,  50 ;  attacked  by 
counsel  for  defense,  54,  55;  ar- 
gument of,  in  Desha  trial,  56- 
60;  not  retained  in  second  Desha 
trial,  61;  toast  by,  66;  Adams 
supported  by,  66;  in  State  Con- 
vention, 67;  election  of,  to  Con- 
gress, 68;  letter  of,  to  Critten- 
den, 69,  124,  125,  135;  life  of, 
at  Washington,  D.  C,  70 ;  elec- 
tion of,  as  Kentucky  legislator, 
71 ;  resolution  introduced  by,  on 
internal  improvements,  72 ;  oppo- 
sition of,  to  bill  concerning 
slaves,  74;  reelection  of,  74;  ef- 
forts of,  for  internal  improve- 
ments, 74;  attitude  of,  toward 
emancipation  of  slaves,  75;  posi- 
tion on  Court  of  Appeals  declined 


by,  76,  79;  death  of  wife  of, 
76;  children  of,  76,  77,  78;  re- 
signs position  on  Court  of  Ap- 
peals, 79,  223 ;  candidacy  of,  for 
Congress.  79,  80;  election  of,  80, 
224;  career  of,  in  Congress,  81- 
93 ;  speeches  of,  82-84 ;  reelection 
of,  to  Congress,  84;  speech  of,  at 
public  dinner,  86;  slaves  owned 
by,  86;  speech  of,  concerning  an- 
nexation of  Texas,  87-88;  atti- 
tude of,  toward  slavery  petitions, 
89,  229,  230;  abolitionist  defend- 
ed bv,  89-91;  resolutions  offered 
by,  concerning  slaves,  92 ;  com- 
mittee work  of,  in  Congress,  92, 
93 ;  desire  of,  for  retirement,  94 ; 
interest  of,  in  silk  industry,  94, 
95 ;  mention  of,  as  candidate  for 
Governor  of  Kentucky,  95,  96; 
friendship  of,  for  Henry  Clay, 
98,  233,  234;  Harrison  support- 
ed by,  98 ;  campaign  activities 
of,  in  Mason  County,  99;  speeches 
of,  at  Whig  meetings,  100-105; 
accompanies  Harrison  to  Nation- 
al capital,  106 ;  services  of,  to 
Harrison  at  the  White  House,  108  , 
109;  positions  offered  to,  by  Har- 
rison, 109,  110;  accepts  gover- 
norship of  Iowa,  109;  presence 
of,  at  Harrison  dinner,  112;  com- 
mission of,  as  Governor,  113, 
238 ;  present  at  death  of  Harri- 
son, 113;  leaves  Kentucky  for 
Iowa,  114;  arrival  of.  in  Iowa, 
115;  speech  of,  at  Burlington, 
117,  118;  characterization  of, 
118-121;  enters  upon  governoi*- 
ship,  122;  relations  of,  to  Web- 
ster, 123,  236;  visits  Iowa  City, 
125 ;  land  near  Burlington  bought 
by,  125;  relation  of,  to  legisla- 
ture, 128;  difficulties  encountered 
by,  129;  letter  to,  concerning 
Missouri  boundary,  130 ;  mes- 
sage of,  131,  137;  veto  used  by, 
134,  135 ;  visit  of,  to  Kentucky, 
136;  home  of,  at  Grouseland, 
136,  141,  142;  divorce  bill  ve- 
toed by,  138;  recommends  vote 
on  Statehood,  140 ;  speech  of, 
144 ;  reported  removal  of,  145 ; 
sickness  in  family  of,  146;  Mis- 
Bourians  pardoned  by,  149,  151; 
attitude  of,  toward  boundary  dis- 
pute, 149-152 ;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward Constitution  of  1844,  153- 
159;  mention  of,  as  candidate  for 
Delegate,  159;  removal  of,  from 
office,  160;  trip  of,  to  Kentucky, 
161;  superintendence  of  Indians 
by,    162-189;    assumes    duties    of 


270 


INDEX 


-  superintendency,  171 ;  visits  In- 
dian agency,  172;  arrangements 
of,  for  treaty,  174 ;  speech  of,  at 
council,  175;  recommendations 
of,  concerning  Indians,  176,  177; 
statement  of  Indian  indebtedness 
submitted  by,  178;  shot  in  effigy, 
179 ;  visits  Indian  country,  179 ; 
threatened  by  land  seekers,  181 ; 
treaty  negotiated  by,  183,  184; 
sale  of  liquor  to  Indians  de- 
nounced by,  184,  185 ;  negotia- 
tions of,  with  Winnebagoes,  186, 
187;  licensed  traders  denounced 
by,  188 ;  plan  of,  for  system  of 
Indian  trade,  188 ;  record  of,  as 
Superintendent  of  Indian  Af- 
fairs, 189 ;  administration  of, 
190,  191;  visit  of,  to  Kentucky, 
191;  return  of,  to  Iowa,  192; 
offered  command  of  troops  in 
Mexican  War,  192;  ill  health  of, 
193 ;  opposition  of,  to  Constitu- 
tion of  1846,  193 ;  mentioned  as 
candidate  for  State  Governor, 
194 ;  Grimes  arraigned  by,  194 ; 
return  of,  to  Kentucky,  195 ; 
last  days  of,  in  Kentucky,  195- 
202 ;  letters  of,  to  his  children, 
198,  199;  young  man  caned  by, 
200;  refuses  candidacy  for  public 
office,  200,  201;  writing  of  Auto- 
biography of,  201,  202  ;  death  of, 
202  ;  story  of  Simon  Kenton  and, 
220 ;  activity  of,  in  local  politics, 
222 ;  toast  by,  224 ;  ideas  of,  on 
war  question,  225 ;  post  in  Wash- 
ington, D.  C.  refused  by,  236, 
237;  slaves  of,  240;  domestic  life 
of,  241 ;  coming  of  children  of,  to 
Iowa,  241,  246,  247;  article  on, 
250;  removal  of,  251;  letters  of, 
on   Indian   affairs,    252 

Chambers,  John,  grandson  of  Gov- 
ernor Chambers,  acknowledgments 
to,   X 

Chambers,  John,  Mrs.  (Hannah  Tay- 
lor), meets  John  Chambers,  23; 
marriage  of,  24;  miniature  of, 
26;  accomplishments  of,  26;  at 
Cedar  Hill,  69,  120;  letters  of, 
70,  71,  220;  death  of,  76;  sis- 
ters of,    226 

Chambers,  John,  Mrs.  (Margaret 
Taylor),  engagement  of,  19;  at- 
titude of,  toward  clerkship,  20 ; 
marriage  of,   21;   death  of,   22 

Chambers,  John  James,  son  of  John 
Chambers,  121:  coming  of,  to 
Iowa,  136,  246,  247;  at  Grouse- 
land,    142;    death   of,    146 

Chambers,  Joseph  Sprigg,  accom- 
panies   Chambers    to    Iowa,    186, 


240 ;  versatility  of,  142 ;  presides 
at  Whig  meeting,  144;  return  of, 
to  Kentucky,  146,  195;  edits 
The  MaysvUle  Herald,  195 ;  sketch 
of    John    Chambers    by,    220 

Chambers,  Laura,  purchase  of  dress 
for,  114;  coming  of,  to  Iowa, 
121,  246,  247;  at  Grouseland, 
142 ;  sickness  of,  146 ;  death  of, 
196 

Chambers,  Lucretia,  fondness  of 
Chambers  for,  77;  birth  and 
death   of,    223 

Chambers,  Margaret  Taylor  (Mrs. 
Hugh  Innis  Brent),  marriage  of, 
223 

Chambers,  Mary,  purchase  of  dress 
for,  114;  coming  of,  to  Iowa,  121, 
246,  247;  at  Grouseland,  142; 
death  of,    196 

Chambers,  Mary,  granddaughter  of 
Governor  Chambers,  136;  comes 
to  Iowa  with  parents,   240 

Chambers,  Matilda,  (Mrs.  Charles 
S.  Brent),  keeps  house  for  John 
Chambers,  77;  marriage  of,  77; 
leaves  Cedar  Hill,  78 ;  death  of 
daughter  of,  198 ;  death  of  John 
Chambers  at  home  of,   202 

Chambers,  Phoebe  (Mrs.  Robert 
Davis),    7,    15 

Chambers,  Rowland,  migration  of, 
from    Ireland,    2 

Chambers,  Rowland,  early  life  of, 
3 ;  swindled  by  Martin,  6 ;  joins 
Revolution,  5 ;  forced  to  leave 
service,  5 ;  misfortunes  of,  6 ; 
migrates  to  Kentucky,  7,  8,  9, 
12 ;  removal  of,  from  Washing- 
ton, 15;  military  service  of,  206; 
return  of,  to  Washington,  208; 
qualifies  as  Justice  of  Peace,  209 

Chambers,  William,  return  of,  from 
Kentucky,  7;  John  Chambers  sent 
to  school  by,   14 

Chambers   and  Taylor,    firm  of,    212 

Chambers'   Ferry,   2 

Chillicothe  (Ohio),  Whig  meeting 
at,    103 

Chouteau,    Pierre,    170 

Chouteau,  Pierre,  and  Company, 
trading  firm  of,  167;  trading 
house  of,  burned,  179;  claim  of 
182,    258 

Christie,   Colonel,  speech  of,   103 

Cincinnati  (Ohio),  Whigs  from,  99; 
Chambers  at,    114 

Clarke,  James,  succeeds  Chambers 
as  Governor,  160 ;  administra- 
tion of,  191;  offers  command  of 
troops  to  Chambers,  192 ;  sketch 
of,  250,  251;  letters  of,  on  In- 
dian   affairs,    252 


INDEX 


271 


Clarke,  William  Penn,  assists  Cham- 
bers with  message,  158;  corre- 
spondence of  Chambers  with,  161, 
191,  193,  194;  opinion  of,  as  to 
Chambers's  height,  240;  article 
on  Chambers  by,  250 

Clarke  County    (Kentucky),  30 

Clay,  Henry,  entertained  at  Cedar 
Hill,  26;  toasts  to,  66;  ill  health 
of,  69;  attitude  of,  toward  slav- 
ery, 73 ;  chosen  United  States 
Senator,  75 ;  dinner  given  to,  86 ; 
Chambers  agrees  with,  87 ;  com- 
promise of,  88;  Whig  predilec- 
tions for,  96;  alienates  himself 
from  abolitionists,  97,  233; 
friendship  of  Chambers  for,  98, 
233,  234;  presence  of,  at  Har- 
rison dinner,  112;  admirers  of, 
144;  popularity  of,  221;  letter 
of,   231 

Coburn,   John,   208 

Coleman,  Nicholas,  candidacy  of, 
for  Congress,  68 

Collins,  Lewis,  in  campaign  of  1840, 
103 ;  celebration  reported  by,  235 

Commentator,  complaint  of,   74 

Conewago   Creek,    2 

Congress,  western  men  in,  28; 
service  of  Chambers  in,  68;  aid 
of  roads  by,  71;  slavery  discus- 
sion in,  86;  slavery  petitions  to, 
88,  89,  228-230;  extra  session 
of.  112;  jurisdiction  of,  over  Ter- 
ritory, 131;  appeal  to,  for  aid, 
132,  137;  memorial  to,  140,  141, 
189;  submission  of  Constitution 
of  1844  to,  143;  action  of,  on 
boundary  of  Iowa,  147-157;  fail- 
ure of,  to  change  Indian  policy, 
188;  Iowa  asks  admission  as 
State  by,   190 

Congressional  Debases,   68 

Constitution  of  1844,  framing  of, 
143;  discussion  of,   152-159 

Constitution  of  1846,  opposition  of 
Chambers  to,    193 

Constitution  of  United  States,  Ken- 
tucky law  in  conflict  with,  44 

Constitutional  Convention,  State, 
vote  on,  131-134;  appropriation 
for,  140;  meeting  of,  in  1844, 
143 

Continental  Congress,  Declaration 
of  Independence  by,   5 

Council  Bluffs  (Iowa),  Indian  sub- 
agency  near  site  of,  167 

Court  of  Appeals  of  Kentucky,  com- 
position of,  43,  44;  decision  of, 
against  stay  laws,  44;  attempt 
to  overthrow,  45,  46;  triumph 
of,    47;    position   on,   declined  by 


Chambers,  76,  79,  223;  struggle 
over,    95 

Covington  (Kentucky),  Whigs  from, 
99 

Craig,  Lewis,  Mason  County  court- 
house  built  by,    13,    207 

Crawford,  Mr.,  employed  in  second 
Desha  trial,  61 

Crawford,  T.  Hartley,  correspond- 
ence of  Chambers  with,  172,  177, 
178,  188;  appointment  of,  to 
make  treaty,    174 ;   speech  of,   175 

Crittenden,  John  J.,  entertained  at 
Cedar  Hill,  26;  letters  of  Cham- 
bers to,  69,  124,  133,  135;  din- 
ner given  in  honor  of,  86;  state- 
ment of  Chambers  to,  87;  ap- 
pointment of,  as  Attorney  Gen- 
eral, 107;  pushes  Brown  for 
Governor  of  Iowa,  110;  pres- 
ence of,  at  Harrison  dinner,  112 ; 
letter  of,   to   Letcher,    112 

Cumberland  Gap,  migration  through, 
10;   reference  to,   207 

Cynthiana  (Kentucky),  Desha  trial 
at,  50 

Dakotah  Indians,   163 
Dauphin    County    (Pennsylvania),  2 
Davenport,    George,    170 
David,   grief  of,   for  Absalom,   56 
Davis,    Garrett,    succeeds    Chambers 
in    Congress,    96;    report    of,    on 
Iowa     boundary,     147 ;     supports 
Iowa's    claim,    148 
Davis,  Peter,  migration  of,  8 
Davis,  Robert,  migration  of,  to  Ken- 
tucky,   7 
Davis,  Robert,  Mrs.    (Phoebe  Cham- 
bers),   7,    15 
Davis   County    (Iowa),    149 
Dayton     (Ohio),    Whig    meeting    at, 

103 
Declaration  of  Independence,  5,  10 
Democrats,  disappointed  in  Van 
Buren,  97;  defeat  of,  in  1840, 
105 ;  power  of,  in  Territory  of 
Iowa,  131;  Statehood  favored  by, 
133 ;  plans  of,  for  Territorial  of- 
fices, 146;  attitude  of,  toward 
Constitution  of  1844,  152,  153, 
154,  155 
Desha,  Isaac  B.,  suspected  of  the 
murder  of  Baker,  48;  granted 
trial  in  Harrison  County,  49; 
evidence  concerning,  51;  compos- 
ure of,  during  trial,  52 ;  charac- 
ter of,  53,  55;  family  of,  54; 
fallibility  of,  59;  found  guilty, 
60;  granted  new  trial,  61;  found 
guilty  on  new  trial,  61;  attempts 
suicide,   62;   bail  granted  to,   62; 


272 


INDEX 


pardoned  by  Governor  Desha,  63 ; 
later  reports  concerning,  63 

Desha,  Joseph,  message  of,  47,  48; 
counsel  for  son's  trial  secured  by, 
49;  presence  of,  at  Desha  trial, 
52,  57 ;  son  pardoned  by,  63 ; 
cost  of  family  of,  to  State,  218 

Desha  trial,  48-64,  118;  volume 
containing  proceedings   at,   216 

Des  Moines  County  (Iowa),  144 

Des  Moines  River,  132;  loway 
Indians  upon,  164;  Sacs  and 
Foxes  settle  upon,  166;  refer- 
ence  to,    175,    184 

Detroit,  defeat  of  Hull  at,  29;  re- 
capture of,   30;   reference  to,  34 

District  of  Columbia,  slavery  in, 
86,    89,    228,    229,    233 

Divorce,  attitude  of  Chambers  to- 
ward,    138 

Dodge,  Augustus  Caesar,  Iowa's 
boundary  claim  supported  by, 
148 ;  Constitution  of  1844  en- 
trusted to,  152 ;  expiration  of 
term  of,  159 ;  reelection  of,  as 
Delegate,  160;  letter  of  Cham- 
bers to,  189;  political  blunder 
of,    249 

Doggate,  Nancy ,  testimony  of,  in 
Desha    trial,    51 

Doggate,  Richard,  Francis  Baker 
at   tavern   of,    51 

Don  Quixote,   111 

Doty,  James  Duane,  appointment 
of,  to  make  treaty,  174;  treaty 
negotiated  by,  with  Sioux  In- 
dians,    186,     260 

Douglass,    Richard,    speech   by,    100 

Durrett,  Reuben  Thomas,  acknowl- 
edgments to,  x;  library  of,  215, 
216 

Eastman,  Enoch  W.,  speeches  of, 
against  Constitution  of  1844,  249 

Eddy,  J.  P.,  trading  house  of,  168, 
255;    claim  of,   182,   258 

Eddyville     (Iowa),    168 

Edinhurg     Review,     111 

Education    in    Iowa,    137,    141 

Edwards,    H.    C,    toast    by,    66 

Edwards,  James  G.,  assists  in  wel- 
come  of   Chambers,    118 

Edwards,  John  C,  opposition  of, 
to  Iowa's  claims,  148 ;  letter  of 
Chambers    to,     149 

Election,  presidential,  of  1828,  65, 
68;    of    1840,    94-105 

England,    4,    6 

Erie,  Lake,  victory  of  Perry  on,  34 

Ewing,  G.  W.,  complaint  of,  187, 
188 

Ewing,  G.  W.  and  W.  G.,  firm  of, 
167;    claim    of,    182,    258 


Ewing,  Thomas,  appointment  of, 
as  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
107;    reference  to,    236 

Fleming  County  (Kentucky),  mur- 
der  of   Baker    in,    48 

Fletcher,  Jonathan  E.,  Indian  sub- 
agent    in    Iowa,     254 

Forman,  Hannah  Chambers,  Mrs., 
acknowledgments   to,    xi 

Forman,  John  S.,  Mrs.  (Jane 
Chambers),  letter  of  John  Cham- 
bers  to,    198,    199,    201 

Forman,  John  S.,  191,  195,  197, 
210 

Forman,  Joseph,  Rowland  Cham- 
bers works  for,   3 

Forman,  Throckmorton,  acknow- 
ledgments to,  xi;  reference  to, 
210,    211,    212,    213 

Fort    Madison    (Iowa),    115 

Fort  Snelling,   site  of,   197 

Fox,    Arthur,    226 

Fox,  Arthur,  Mrs.  (Lucretia  Tay- 
lor),   226 

Fox  Indians,  163 ;  division  line  be- 
tween Sioux  and,  164;  in  Black 
Hawk  War,  165 ;  move  west- 
ward, 166;  agency  of,  166,  167, 
170,  173  174,  180;  factional 
spirit  among,  168-173 ;  council 
of  Beach  with,  173 ;  negotia- 
tions with,  for  land  cession,  174, 
180;  indebtedness  of,  178,  181- 
183;  treaty  of  1842  with,  183; 
removal  of,  185 ;  return  of,  from 
Kansas,    260 

France,  26;  danger  of  war  with, 
81.    82 

Frankfort    (Kentucky),    67,    74,  110 

Frenchtown,  defeat  of  Winchester 
at,    32 

Goggin,  Colonel,  Cedar  Hill  pur- 
chased  by,    195 

Granger,  Francis,  appointment  of, 
as    Postmaster-General,     107 

Great  Britain,  denunciation  of,  30 ; 
Ballengall  a  citizen  of,  31;  medi- 
ation  of,    82 

Great  Lakes,  migrations  of  Indians 
along,    162,    164 

Greathouse,  William,  slaves  of,  ab- 
ducted,   90,    91 

Gregory,    Uriah,    arrest    of,    130 

Grimes,  James  W.,  speech  of,  wel- 
coming Chambers,  115-117;  pe- 
tition signed  by,  147;  arraign- 
ment of,  by  Chambers,  194; 
minutes  of  Indian  council  kept 
by,    257 

Groiiseland,  home  of  Chambers  at, 
136,  141,  142,  161,  192,  193, 
196 


INDEX 


273 


Hagerstown     (Maryland),     23,     208 

Hall,  Barbara  Bowie  (Mrs.  Igna- 
tius   Taylor  V    209 

Hall,    Letitia    Sprigg,    226 

Hardfish,  following  of,  168,  169, 
173 :  efforts  of,  for  equitable  dis- 
tribution of  annuities,  172 ;  ab- 
sence of,  from  council,  174;  cen- 
sus of  band  of,  255 

Harrisburg  (Pennsylvania),  settle- 
ment near,  2 ;  convention  of 
Whigs   at,    97,    100 

Harrison,  William  Henry,  army  of, 
29;  army  of,  delayed,  31;  Cham- 
bers arranges  papers  of,  33 ;  pur- 
suit of  Procter  by,  34,  35;  vic- 
tory of,  at  battle  of  the  Thames, 
35;  report  of  battle  of  Thames 
by,  36;  candidacy  of,  for  presi- 
dency in  1836,  80;  candidacy  of, 
for  presidency  in  1840,  96;  nomi- 
nation of,  for  President.  97,  233; 
campaign  in  favor  of,  97-105, 
234;  eulogies  of,  101;  victory  of, 
105:  accompanied  to  Washington 
by  Chambers  and  Todd.  106;  in- 
auguration of,  107 ;  installation 
of,  in  White  House,  108;  ap- 
pointments by,  109,  110,  111; 
dinner  by,  112;  death  of,  113, 
116 

Harrison  County  (Kentucky),  De- 
sha trial  transferred  to,  49;  ref- 
erence  to,    50.    63 

Harrodsburg  (Kentucky),  conven- 
tion   at,    95 

Hawkins,  Joseph  C.  seat  of,  va- 
cated, 131;  appointment  as  Gov- 
ernor sought  by,  237 

Hebard,  Alfred,  appointment  of,  as 
investigating  agent,  181;  opin- 
ion of,  as  to  Chambers's  height, 
241;   article  by,   259 

Henry,  John  W.,  comes  to  Cedar 
Hill,  78 

Henry,  John  W.,  Mrs.  (Hannah 
Chambers),  assumes  care  of  Ce- 
dar Hill,   78 

Highland  clan,  ancestors  of  Cham- 
bers in,  2 

Hill.    Isaac.    237 

Hull,  William,   defeat  of,  29 

Illinois,   Whigs   from,    144 
Indian   Affairs,    Office  of,    at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  xi 
Indian   Boundary  Line,    147 
Indiana,    retaliation   upon,    39 
Indians,    menacing   attitude   of,    29 
massacre  of  Kentuckians  by,   32 
contempt     of,     for     Procter,     34 
relations    of    Chambers    to,    127 
visits   of,    to    Chambers,    142;    af- 


fairs relating  to,  in  Iowa,  162- 
189;  traders  among,  167,  168; 
trade  and  intercourse  with,  176, 
177;  evils  practiced  upon,  176, 
188 ;  system  of  trade  suggested 
for,  188,  189;  westward  move- 
ment of,  190;  negotiations  with, 
in    Minnesota,    197,    198 

Internal  Improvements,  efforts  for, 
in    Kentucky,    72 

Iowa,  Territory  of,  history  of,  vii; 
growth  of,  ix ;  Governor  of,  2 ; 
Chambers  in,  25 ;  governorship 
of,  109-113;  Chambers  leaves  for, 
114;  coming  of  Chambers  to, 
120-122;  Chambers  as  Governor 
of,  127-142;  people  of,  128;  Or- 
ganic Act  of,  130,  135;  legisla- 
ture of,  131,  133.  136,  138; 
question  of  Statehood  in,  132,  133, 
140.  143-160;  political  conditions 
in,  133 ;  return  of  Chambers  to, 
136;  reported  change  of  officers 
in,  139,  145;  home  of  Chambers 
in,  145,  146;  boundaries  of,  147- 
152;  Indian  affairs  in,  162-189; 
extent  of,  162 ;  period  of  growth 
of,  190;  troops  of,  in  Mexican 
war.   192 

Iowa  City  (Iowa),  Lucas  at,  122; 
visit  of  Chambers  to,  125;  meet- 
ing of  legislature  at,  131,  136; 
public  buildings  at,  132,  134; 
mail  from,  134;  meeting  of  Con- 
stitutional   Convention    at,    143 

Iowa-Missouri  boundary  dispute, 
129,     130,     147-152 

Iowa  River,  165 ;  Indians  move 
from,    166 

loway  Indians,  163;  subjugation 
of,    164 

Ireland,  ancestry  of  Chambers  in, 
2 

Irvin,  Brownson  and.  Chambers 
clerks  in  store  of,  15 

Jackson,  Andrew,  candidacy  of,  for 
President,  65;  toasts  to,  66; 
execution  of  men  at  Mobile  by, 
66;  success  of,  in  election  of 
1828,  68  ;  rumor  concerning,  69  ; 
inauguration  of,  71 ;  veto  by,  71 ; 
antipathy  of,  for  internal  im- 
provements, 72;  message  of,  81, 
82,    221;    appointment   by,    219 

Jenifer,    Daniel,    229 

Johnson,  Richard  M.,  mounted  regi- 
ment of,  in  battle  of  Thames,  35; 
defeat  of,  for  United  States  Sena- 
tor, 75 ;  Chambers  speaks  of, 
104;  presence  of,  at  Harrison 
dinner,    112 


18 


274 


INDEX 


.Tourdan,   Mrs.    (Mrs.   Ignatius  Tay- 
lor),  209 
Juniata   River,    206 

Kansas,  Sac  and  Fox  Indians  in, 
260 

Kendall,  Amos,  Jackson  supported 
by,    66 

Kenton,  Simon,  explorations  of,  in 
Kentucky,    10;    pension   of,    220 

Kentucky,  service  of  Chambers  in, 
vii,  ix ;  trail  into  interior  of,  9,  10 ; 
northeast  gateway  of,  11;  up- 
lands of,  12 ;  change  in  courts 
of,  18 ;  coming  of  Hannah  Tay- 
lor to,  20;  hemp  industry  in,  26; 
part  of,  in  War  of  1812,  29; 
legislature  of,  30;  news  of  mas- 
sacre of  Frenchtown  reaches,  32 ; 
return  of  Chambers  to,  from  War 
of  1812,  36;  gallantry  in,  37; 
legislature  of,  38,  72;  financial 
conditions  in,  39,  40-47;  bound- 
ary dispute  between  Tennessee 
and,  39;  Court  of  Appeals  of, 
43;  orators  of,  57;  reference  to, 
63,  65;  election  of  1828  in,  66, 
67;  slavery  in,  73;  federal  aid 
to,  83 ;  Representatives  of,  86, 
147;  conciliation  by,  87,  88;  es- 
cape of  slaves  from,  90 ;  silk  in- 
dustry in,  94,  95;  Whigs  of,  100, 
104;  reference  to,  103,  106,  110; 
Whig  victory  in,  105 ;  Chambers 
leaves,  113,  121;  Chambers  in 
legislature  of,  116;  development 
of,  118;  service  of  Chambers  in, 
119;  visit  of  Chambers  to,  136, 
178;  return  of  Chambers  to, 
146,  191,  198;  friends  of  Cham- 
bers in,    160;   cholera  in,    196 

Keokuk,  Indians  restrained  by, 
165;  reservation  of,  165,  166; 
band  of,  168,  170;  fondness  of, 
for  money,  169 ;  intemperance  of, 
172;  payment  to,  174;  speech 
of,  175;  sale  of  lands  proposed 
by,   178;  petition  of  band  of.  255 

Keosauqua  (Iowa),  carrying  of 
mail    to,    134 

Key,  Marshall,  resolutions  read  by, 
100 

Kinderhook,  Wizard  of  (Martin 
Van  Buren),   96 

Lake  Erie,   victory  of  Perry  on,   34 
Lapsley  v.   Brashears,   case  of,    215 
LeClaire,    Antoine,    presence    of,    at 
Indian  Agency,    170;    acts   as  in- 
terpreter   at   treaty   of    1842,    183 
Lee,   Betty,  sister  of  Sarah  Lee,   3 
Lee,    Sarah,   marriage   of,   to   James 
Chambers,    3 


Leffier,  Shepherd,  chosen  as  legis- 
lator, 131;  speeches  of,  against 
Constitution   of    1844,    249 

Letcher,  Robert  P.,  nomination  of, 
for  Governor,  96,  233 ;  letter  to, 
110,   112;  letter  from.  111 

Lewis   County    (Kentucky),    200 

Lexington  (Kentucky),  road  to,  10, 
73,  74;  Chambers  at  school  in, 
14;  Judge  Shannon  of,  50;  silk 
convention    at,    94 

Library  of  Congress,   officials  of,   xi 

Licking  Valley,   7,   11 

Limestone,  early  name  for  Mays- 
ville,  Kentucky,  9 ;  migration  by 
way  of,  9,  10;  Chambers  lands 
at,    12;   reference  to,    114 

Linder,  William  P.,  trial  of,  149; 
pardon  of,   149,  151 

London,    205 

Long    Island,    3 

Louisville  (Kentucky),  Whigs  from 
99;  Chambers  lands  at,  114; 
Henry   Chambers    at,    196 

Lowe,  Ralph  P.,  defeat  of,  for 
Delegate,    160 

Lower   Blue   Licks    (Kentucky),    68 

Lucas,  Robert,  administration  of, 
vii ;  last  weeks  of  governorship  of, 
109;  difficulties  between  Grimes 
and,  116;  absence  of,  from  Bur- 
lington, 122 ;  no  notice  of  change 
received  by,  123,  242 ;  relations 
of,  to  legislature,  127;  boundary 
crisis  handled  by,  129,  150 ; 
recommendation  of,  131;  Jesse 
Williams  accompanies,  139;  men- 
tion of,  as  Governor,  146 ;  Sec- 
retary under,  160;  Indian  affairs 
at  opening  of  term  of,  168 ;  sym- 
pathy of,  for  Hardfish,  169 ;  op- 
position of,  to  Beach,  171;  ad- 
ministration of,  190 ;  address  of, 
243 ;  proclamation  of,  243 ;  let- 
ters of,   on   Indian   affairs,   252 

Lucas    Boundaries,     153 

McAfee,  Robert,  in  Kentucky  leg- 
islature,   30 

McClung,  John  A.,  resolutions  pre- 
sented by,    100;   speech  by,    104 

McClung,   Will,   law   cases   of,    22 

MacGregor,  James,  Indian  sub- 
agent   in   Iowa,    254 

Mackoy,  Harry  Brent,  acknowledg- 
ments to,  x;  aid  given  by,  206; 
papers  in  possession  of,    206 

Mackoy,  W.  H.,  acknowledgements 
to,    xi;    article   by,    214 

McLean,  John,  Chambers  takes  oath 
before,  114;  appointment  of,  on 
Supreme   Court,    219 


INDEX 


275 


Mad    River,    220 

Madeira's    Hotel    (Chillicothe),    102 

Mahan,  John  B.,  trial  of,  for  ab- 
duction of  slaves,  90,  9X;  letter 
of,   230;   testimony   against,   231 

Maiden,   34 

Maltby,  Colonel,  acknowledgments 
to,  xi 

Maltby,  Lucien,  acknowledgments 
to,  xi;  present  owner  of  Cedar 
Hill,    210 

Marietta     (Ohio),    9 

Marshall,  Alexander  K.,  law  cases 
of,    22 

Marshall,  Martin  P.,  law  cases  of, 
22 ;  counsel  in  Desha  trial,  50 ; 
speech  of,   52 

Marshall,  Thomas,  a  candidate  for 
new   clerkship,    18 

Martin,  John,  Rowland  Chambers 
a  partner  of,  3 ;  leaves  America, 
4;    heirs   of,    6 

Maryland,    19,    23 

Mason  Central  Tippecanoe  Club, 
organization   of,    99 

Mason  County  (Kentucky),  9,  11, 
22,  23,  30,  38,  39,  46,  67,  73,  90, 
91,    92,    105,    146,    195,   200,   208 

Mason   County   Circuit,   22,   23 

Mason    County    Silk    Society,    94 

Massachusetts,     173 

Mayslick  (Kentucky),  murder  of 
Baker   near,    48 

Maysville  (Kentucky),  early  town 
of,  9;  gathering  of  Whigs  at,  99, 
100;  Chambers  leaves,  for  I' -v^a, 
113;  visit  of  Chambers  to,  191; 
home  of  Chambers  near,  195, 
196;  Chambers  leaves,  197; 
county  records  at,   208 

MayavUle  Eagle,  items  in,  48,  67, 
71;  reference  to,  83,  95  [  editor 
of,    103 

MaygviUe  Herald,  The,  J.  S.  Cham- 
bers   edits,     195 

MaygviUe   Monitor,    80 

Maysville  Tippecanoe   Club,    99 

Maysville  Turnpike,  migration  by 
way  of,  10;  Chambers  builds 
house  near,  24;  movements  for 
aid  to,  71-74;  procession  along, 
100;    material    relating   to,    207 

Mendota    (Minnesota),    197 

Menefee,  Richard  H.,  speech  by,  100 

Mercer    County     (Kentucky),    30 

Meskwaki  Indians,  settlement  of,  in 
Iowa,    260 

Metcalfe,  Thomas,  in  legislature  of 
Kentucky,  30 ;  speeches  by,  100, 
104;  vote  for,  219;  call  for  can- 
didacy of,   226 

Mexican  War,  command  of  troops 
in,   offered   to   Chambers,    192 


Miami  Valley,  convention  of  Whigs 
of,    103 

Militia  of  Territory  of  Iowa,  137, 
141 

Mills,  Benjamin,  Judge  of  Ken- 
tucky   Court    of    Appeals,    44,    46 

Minnesota,  part  of,  included  in  Ter- 
ritory   of    Iowa,    162 

Minnesota,    Territory    of,    197 

Minnesota    River,     197 

Mississippi  River,  prairies  east  of, 
9 ;  country  between  AUeghanies 
and,  98;  towns  on,  114,  128;  im- 
provement of,  132,  137,  138, 
141;  reference  to,  140,  164,  166, 
179,    186,    197 

Mississippi  Valley,  settling  of,  vii, 
1 ;  Indians  in,   163 

Missouri    Compromise,    88 

Missouri-Iowa  boundary  dispute, 
129,     130,     147-152 

Missouri  River,  141,  153,  163, 
164,    178,    184,    190 

Mitchell,  Mr.,  presence  of,  at  In- 
dian agency,   170 

Mobi!e,  executions  by  Jackson  at,  66 

Monongahela  country.  Whiskey  In- 
surrection  in,    8 

Monongahela  River,  migration  on, 
8 

Moore,  Mr.,  Chambers  clerks  for, 
13 

Moore,  Zedekiah,  Francis  Baker  at 
tavern   of,    51 

Morehead,  J.  T.,  report  of,  72 ;  ap- 
pointment by,  79 ;  speeches  by, 
100,  102 ;  mission  of,  to  Ohio, 
231 

MuUican,  Phoebe,  marriage  of,  to 
Rowland   Chambers,    3 

Mullinix,  Preston,  pardon  of,  149, 
151 

Muscatine    (Iowa),    130 

Muskingum   River,    9 

National    House    (Burlington).    118 

National  Republicans,  Metcalfe 
nominated   by,    67 

Navy,  increase  of,  of  United  States, 
81     82 

Neall'ey,   Colonel,   122 

Neutral  Ground,  erection  of,  164; 
Winnebagoes  move  to,  167;  re- 
moval of  Winnebagoes  from,  186, 
187 

New  Court,  records  of,  215 

New    Court    Party,    46,    47,    65,    66 

New    England,    villages    of,     1 

New    Hampshire,    109 

New  Jersey,  birth  of  John  Chambers 
in,  vii;  Rowland  Chambers  in, 
3 ;   property  in,   4 ;   militia  of,   5 ; 


276 


INDEX 


migration   of   Chambers   from,    8 ; 

boyhood  of  John  Chambers  in,  13 
New  York,  Rowland  Chambers  goes 

to,   3 ;   reference  to,  4,  8 ;  fire  in, 

83 
New    York    Relief    Bill,    speech    of 

Chambers    on,    82-84 
Nicholas     County     (Kentucky),     30, 

68 
Nicollet    Boundaries,    153,    249 
Niles'  Register,  quotations  from,  103 
North  Dakota,   part  of,   included  in 

Territory   of   Iowa,    162 
Northwest,  forts  of,   28;   defense  of, 

40 
Nullification,     attitude     of     Clay   to- 
ward, 88 

Ohio,  experience  of  Lucas  in,  vii; 
Zane's  trace  across,  9;  impor 
tance  of,  in  War  of  1812,  29 
defense  of,  40 ;  internal  improve' 
ment  system  of,  72 ;  Representa' 
tives  from,  86;  effect  of  Mahan 
case  in,  90 ;  reference  to,  92,  97, 
101,  107,  139;  Whig  meetings 
in,  102,  103,  104;  Chambers 
stops  in,  114;  development  of, 
117 

Ohio  River,  migration  on,  8,  9,  10; 
reference  to,  12,  16,  162,  197; 
descent  of,  in  1794,  117 

Ohio  Valley,  changes  in,  28;  Whig 
meetings  in,   106 

Old  Court  Party,  46,  47,  65,  66,  68 

Old    Dominion,    families    of,    1 

Omaha   Indians,    163 

Oquawka    (Illinois),    170 

Organic  Act  of  the  Territory  of 
Iowa,    130,    135 

Otoe  Indians,   163 

Ottumwa  (Iowa),  trading  posts 
near  site   of,    167 

Owsley,  William,  Judge  of  Kentucky 
Court  of  Appeals,  44,  46;  defeat 
of,  for  gubernatorial  nomination, 
233 

Oxford   (England),  research  at,  205 

Paris  (Kentucky),  73,  74,  77,  191, 
196,  201;  death  of  John  James 
Chambers  at,  146;  death  of  John 
Chambers  at,  202 ;  Whig  celebra- 
tion at,  224 

Parish,  John  C,  biographies  writ- 
ten  by,    vii,    preface   by,    ix 

Parran,  Ann,  Mrs.,  (Mrs.  Ignatius 
Taylor),  209 

Parvin,  Theodore  S.,  speeches  of, 
against  Constitution  of  1844,  249 

Pashepaho,  suggestion  of,  173 ; 
agreement   signed  by,    174 

Paxton,    James    A.,    partnership    of 


Chambers  with,   38;   reference  to, 
212,    213 
Paxton,  William,  letter  from,  212 
Payne,  Major,  part  taken  by,  in  bat- 
tle of  the  Thames,  36 
Penitentiary,     recommendation    con- 
cerning,  132,   137 
Pennsylvania,  migration  across,  8 
Perry,    Oliver    Hazard,    victory    of, 

33,  34 

Petitions,  reception  of,  by  Congress, 
88,    89,    228-230 

Peyton,  Bailey,  Chambers  commend- 
ed by,   84 

Phelps,   S.   S.,   167,   170 

Phelps,  William,   167,   170 

Phister,  J.  O.,  accompanies  Cham- 
bers as  private  secretary,   121 

Pickett,  Dr.  Thomas,  acknowledg- 
ments to,  xi 

Pilcher,  Major,  correspondence  of, 
172 

Pinckney  Resolutions,  passage  of, 
88;  text  of,   228 

Pittsburg,    emigrants  pass,    8 

Plates,  XV,  frontispiece,  26 

Platte  River,    163 

Polk,  James  K.,  campaign  of,  144; 
election  of,  146 ;  petition  to,  147 ; 
takes  office,  159 ;  retention  of 
Chambers  by,  161 ;  reference  to, 
230,    239,   252 

Pope,   John,    230 

Portsmouth  (Ohio),  site  of,  9; 
Whigs   from,    99 

Pottawattamie  Indians,  163 ;  agency 
of,    167;    reference  to,    178 

Poweshiek,  annuities  paid  to,  169; 
reference   to,   255 

Poyntz,   N.,   letter  to,   210 

Procter,  Henry,  army  of,  32 ;  re- 
treat of,  into  Canada,  34;  con- 
tempt of  Tecumseh  for,  34,  35 ; 
defeat  and  flight  of,  35,  36 

Raisin   River,  massacre  on.   32,   33, 

34,  35,    36 

Ramsay,  Alexander,  negotiations  of, 
with  Sioux,    197 

Randolph,  John,  similarity  of  Hen- 
ry  Wise   to,    226 

Raritan  River,  mills  on,   3 

Reeder,  Henry,  appointment  of,  as 
delegate  to   silk  convention,   94 

Reid,  Walker,  instructions  of,  to 
jury,   91 

Relief  Party,  legislation  secured  by, 
41,  42;  composition  of,  44;  con- 
nection of  William  T.  Barry  with, 
53 

Revolutionary  War,  i;  outbreak  of, 
3 ;  close  of,  6 ;  reference  to,  28, 
30 


INDEX 


277 


Reynolds,  Thomas,  letter  of,  to 
Chambers,    130,    131,  244 

Richardson,  John,   212 

Ripley  (Ohio),  meeting  of  Whigs 
at,  104;  Chambers  visits  Francis 
Taylor  at,    197 

Robertson,  George,  prominent  in  An- 
ti-Relief Party.   45 

Rock  River,   Sac  Indians  on,   164 

Roman8,  reference  to,  in  Harri- 
son's  inaugural   speech,    107 

Rowan,  John,  prominent  in  Relief 
Party,  44 ;  counsel  in  Desha  trial, 
49;  prominence  of,  50;  argument 
of.  in  Desha  trial,  55 ;  gift  of 
speech  of,  56;  reply  of  Chambers 
to,  58;  not  retained  in  second 
Desha  trial,  61;  accusations  of, 
118;   election  of,  as  Senator,  216 

Sac   Indians,    163;   early  village  of, 
164;    in   Black  Hawk  War.    165; 
migration     of,     166;     agency     of, 
166,     167,     170,     173,     174,     180; 
factional    spirit    among,    168-173 ; 
council   of   Beach   with,    173;    ne- 
gotiations with,   for  land  cession, 
174,    180;    IndebtedQess    of,    178. 
180-183;     treaty    of     1842    with, 
183 ;  removal  of,   185 ;  return  of, 
from  Kansas,  260 
St.      Louis      (Missouri),     Chambers 
passes,    114;    rumor    from,    145; 
reference    to,    167,    170 
St.  Peters  River  (Minnesota  River), 
Indian  agency  on,   166,   180;  ref- 
erence to,    187 
Sancho    Panza,    111 
Sandford,    Major,    167,    170 
Sandusky,   Upper,  Harrison  at,   81 
Sandusky   River,   camp  of  Harrison 

on,    33 
Scioto  River,  9 
Scotland,   ancestors  of  Chambers  in, 

2;  Judge  Ballengall  born  in,  31 
Seneca,   Camp,   Harrison   at,   33,   34 
Shambaugh,    Benj.    F.,    editor's    in- 
troduction   by,    vii ;    volume    sug- 
gested  by,    ix;    Autobiography    of 
John    Chambers    secured    by,     x, 
205;      acknowledgments     to,     xi; 
newspaper  compilation   by,   252 
Shannon,   Judge,   trial  of  Desha  be- 
fore,   50 ;    new    trial    granted    by, 
61 ;  censure  of,  61 
Sharpe,    Solomon    P.,    prominent    in 

Relief  Party,  44 
"Shockoquon",   ferry  boat,    115 
Shelby,  Isaac,  message  of,  30;  takes 
command  of  troops,   32 ;  letters  to 
Chambers     from,     33 ;      Harrison 
joined   by,    34 


Silk  industry  in  Kentucky,  94,  95, 
232 

Sioux  Indians,  163 ;  wars  of  Sacs 
and  Foxes  with,  164;  agency  of, 
166 ;  removal  of  Winnebagoes  to 
country  of,  180;  negotiations 
with,    186,    197-198 

Sioux  River,    141 

Slack,  Jacob  A.,  Old  Court  opposed 
by,  46 

Slaughter,  Gabriel,  appointment  by, 
40 

Slavery,  discussion  of,  86;  petitions 
to  Congress  concerning,  88,  89 ; 
meddling  of  North  with,  227, 
232 ;  power  of  Congress  over, 
229;  position  of  Henry  Clay  on, 
233 

Slaves,  fears  of  insurrection  of,  71; 
emancipation  of,  in  Kentucky, 
73,    75 

Smith,  J.  Speed,  mission  of,  to  Ohio, 
231;   reference  to,   234 

Smith,  Jeremiah,  Indians  exhibited 
by.  179 

Somerset    County    (New   Jersey),    3 

South,  Confederacy  of  the,  87 

South  Dakota,  part  of,  included  in 
Territory   of   Iowa,    162 

Sprigg,   Joseph,    209 

Statehood,  question  of,  131-134, 
140,    143,    152-159 

Stith,  Mrs.,  celebration  at  tavern 
of.   65 

Stowe,  Harriet  Beecher,  slave  sale 
scene   of,    207 

Stull,  Lucretia,  letter  of  Chambers 
to,  84;  visit  of,  to  Cedar  Hill, 
226 

Stull,  O.  H.  W.,  appointed  Secre- 
tary of  Territory  of  Iowa,  113; 
daughters  of,  122 ;  becomes  Act- 
ing Governor,  136 ;  removal  of, 
139;   family  of,   226 

Street,  Joseph  M.,  Indian  Agent 
in  Iowa,  166;  death  of,  170; 
sketch  of,   254 

Sub-Treasury  Bill,   defeat  of,   85 

Sullivan  Boundary  Line,  recom- 
mended by  Davis,    147 

Supreme  Court  of  the  Territory  of 
Iowa,    147 

Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
denunciation  of,  47;  appoint- 
ment to,  69;  reference  to,  114, 
130,    151 

Susquehanna  River,  Rowland  Cham- 
bers settles  on,  2 

Taliaferro,   Lawrence,  Indian  Agent 

in  Iowa,    166 
Tama    County    (Iowa),    Indians   in, 

260 


278 


INDEX 


Tanner,  William,  candidacy  of,  for 
Congress,    80 ;    votes    for,    224 

Tariff    Convention,    222 

Taul,  Mr.,  counsel  in  Desha  trial, 
50 ;  employed  in  second  Desha 
trial,    61 

Taylor,  Ann    209 

Taylor,  Francis,  offers  deputy  clerk- 
ship to  Chambers,  15;  withdraws 
to  farm,  16;  Chambers  uses  li- 
brary of,  17;  a  candidate  for 
new  clerkship,  18,  19;  election 
of,  as  clerk,  20;  opposition  of, 
to  marriage  of  Chambers,  20,  21; 
Chambers  visits,  197;  sketch  of, 
208;  father  of,  209;  presides 
over    Harrison   meeting,    235 

Taylor,  Hannah  (Mrs.  John  Cham- 
bers), Chambers  meets,  23;  mar- 
riage of,  to  Chambers,  24;  min- 
iature of,  26;  accomplishments 
of,  26;  hospitality  of,  120;  an- 
cestors of,  209;  letters  of,  220; 
sisters  of,   226 

Taylor,  Ignatius,  attitude  of,  toward 
daughter's  marriage,  21;  Cham- 
bers visits  home  of,  23;  son  of, 
208;    wives   of,    209 

Taylor,  Jane  (Mrs.  Samuel  Treat), 
226 

Taylor,  Lucretia  (Mrs.  Arthur 
Fox),  226 

Taylor,  Margaret  (Mrs.  John  Cham- 
laers),  engagement  of,  to  John 
Chambers,  19 ;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward clerkship,  20 ;  marriage  of, 
to  Chambers,  21;  death  of,  22; 
father  of,    209 

Taylor,  Mr.,  Chambers  in  partner- 
ship with,   38 

Taylor,  Robert,  Old  Court  defended 
by,   46;  bill  of,   73 

Taylor,  William,  arrival  of,  expect- 
ed,   108 

Taylor,   Chambers  and,  firm  of,  212 

Tecumseh,  contempt  of,  for  General 
Procter,   34;   death  of,   35,   36 

Ten   Eyck,    Jacob,    206 

Tennessee,  boundary  dispute  be- 
tween Kentucky  and,  39 ;  execu- 
tion of  militiamen  of,  66 ;  Rep- 
resentatives of,   84.   86 

Texas,  Isaac  Desha  goes  to,  63  ;  an- 
nexation of,    86,   87 

Thames,  battle  of  the,  35,  36,  80, 
96,    101,    103,    234 

Thames  River,  retreat  of  Procter 
up,   34;  battle  on  bank  of,   35 

Thornton,  John  Rootes,  candidacy 
of,  80 

Tippecanoe,  battle  of,  80,  101,  103, 
108,    224 

Tippecanoe  clubs,   99,   107 


Todd,  Charles  S.,  part  taken  by,  in 
battle  of  the  Thames,  36 ;  enters 
campaign  for  Harrison,  98 ; 
speech  by,  103,  104 ;  presence  of, 
at  Harrison  dinner,  112.  113; 
letter  of,  concerning  Harrison, 
234 

Toulman,  Harry,  President  of 
Transylvania    Seminary,    14 

Townsend,  John  Wilson,  acknowl- 
edgments to,  xi 

"Transit",  steamer  carrying  Whig 
delegation,   102 

Transylvania  Seminary,  Chambers 
attends,    14 

Treat,    Samuel,   226 

Treat,  Samuel,  Mrs.  (Jane  Taylor), 
226 

Trimble,   Robert,   death  of,    219 

Turkey  River,  Indian  agency  on, 
167 

Tyler,  John,  presence  of,  at  Harri- 
son dinner,  112;  appointments 
of,  139 ;  nomination  of,  233 ;  ref- 
erence to,   239 

Ulster,    Province  of,   2 

Underwood,    Joseph,    defeat   of,    219 

United    States,    war   of,    with   Great 

Britain,    31;    difficulties    of,    with 

France,    81 
Upper  Iowa  River,   164 
Upper  Sandusky,  Harrison  at,  31 

Van  Buren,  Martin,  extra  session 
called  by,  85 ;  criticism  of,  95 ; 
close  of  administration  of,  96, 
105,  108;  support  of,  by  Demo- 
crats,  97;   attacks  upon,   101 

Vance,  Joseph,  requisition  granted 
by,   90;   letter  of  Mahan  to,   230 

Van  der  Zee,  Jacob,  investigations 
in    England    by,    205 

Vaughan,  Mr.,  counsel  for  Mahan, 
91 

Veto,  exercise  of.  by  Chambers,   134 

Viele,  Philip,  appointment  as  Gov- 
ernor   sought   by,    237 

Virginia,  Lucas  born  in,  vii;  moun- 
taineers of,  7;  legislature  of,  11; 
reference   to,    84,    89 

Wall,  William  K.,  Desha  trial  prose- 
cuted by,  49 ;  address  of,  52 ; 
reflection  upon,  58 ;  conducts 
second  prosecution  of  Desha 
alone,    61 

Wapello,  annuities  paid  to,  169 ; 
proposes  cession  of  land,  178; 
reference  to,   255 

Wapello  Countv   (Iowa),  166 

War   for   the   Union,    40,    86 


INDEX 


279 


War  of  1812,  attitude  of  West  to- 
ward, 28,  29;  Chambers  in,  98; 
veterans   of,    107 

Washington,  D,  C,  materials  in, 
x;  Chambers  at,  68,  70,  85; 
Chambers  refuses  position  in, 
109;  duties  of  Harrison  in.  111; 
memorial  sent  to,  170;  reference 
to,    177,    178,    197,    198 

Washington  (Kentucky),  home  of 
Chambers  at,  xi;  early  history  of, 
10,  11;  description  of.  12,  13; 
Chambers  settles  in,  13 ;  return 
of  Chambers  to,  14;  removal  of 
Rowland  Chambers  from,  15 ; 
Chambers  Clerk  of  Trustees  of, 
16 ;  parents  of  Chambers  return 
to,  18;  meeting  at,  46:  Fourth 
of  July  celebration  at,  65;  turn- 
pike through,  72,  73,  74 ;  silk 
meeting  at,  94;  court-house  in, 
99;  Whig  celebration  at,  99-101; 
liberty  pole  raised  at,  104;  rally 
in.  105;  visit  of  Chambers  to, 
161;  burial  of  John  Chambers 
at.  202;  reference  to,  207,  208, 
227 

Webster,  Daniel,  Whig  predilections 
for,  96 ;  eliminated  from  cam- 
paign of  1840,  97;  chosen  for 
Secretary  of  State,  107;  inaugu- 
ral address  revised  by,  107,  123 ; 
favors  James  Wilson  as  Gover- 
nor of  Iowa,  110,  123;  presence 
of,  at  Harrison  dinner,  112;  neg- 
lect of,  to  notify  Lucas  of  change 
in  governorship,  123 ;  changes 
of  inaugural  address  by,  236; 
candidate  of,  237;  reference  to, 
242 

West,  attitude  of,  toward  War  of 
1812.  28,  29;  presidential  candi- 
dates from,   97 

Westward  movement,  vii 

Wheeling  (West  Virginia),  9;  din- 
ner at,   86 

Whigs,  Harrison  the  presidential 
candidate  of,  80;  minority  of,  in 
Congress,  81,  85;  in  campaign 
of  1840,  96,  97-105;  convention 
of,  at  Harrisburg,  97;  triumph 
of,  105 ;  plans  of,  to  welcome 
Chambers,  115;  minority  of,  in 
Territory  of  Iowa,   131,   135;  op- 


position of,  to  Statehood,  133 ; 
delegates  to  Constitutional  Con- 
vention of,  143,  193;  meeting  of, 
144 ;  opposition  of,  to  Constitu- 
tion of  1844,  152;  State  conven- 
tion of,  in  1839,  233;  National 
convention  of,  in  1839,  233 

White  House,  Harrison  installed  in, 
108 

Whittlesey,  Elisha,  Chambers  suc- 
ceeds,  92 

Wicliffe,  Charles  A.,  speech  bv.  102, 
104 

Wicliffe,  Robert,  prominent  in  Anti- 
Relief  Party,  45 

Wiggins,  Mr.,  Chambers  clerks  in 
store  of,   13 

Wilderness  Road,   207 

Williams,  George  W..  candidacy  of, 
for  Congress,  80;  position  of,  on 
Bank  question,    80,    224 

Williams,  Jesse,  correspondence  of, 
122,  139,  240;  appointment  of, 
as  Secretary  of  Territory  of  Iowa, 
140,    247 

Williams,  Joseph,  petition  for  ap- 
pointment of,   as   Governor,    147 

Williams,   M.  T.,  letter  of,    139 

Wilson,  James,  rumors  of  appoint- 
ment of,  as  Governor  of  Iowa, 
109,  110;  candidacy  of,  for  Gov- 
ernor, 123,  237;  mention  of,  as 
candidate   for   Delegate,    159 

Winchester,  James,  advance  of,  31; 
defeat  of,  at  Frenchtown,   32 

Winnebago  Indians,  163,  164;  take 
part  in  Black  Hawk  War,  165; 
agency  of,  167;  negotiations  with, 
179,    186,    187 

Wisconsin,    174 

Wise,  Henry  A.,  Chambers  com- 
mended by,  84 ;  attitude  of,  to- 
ward slavery  petitions,  89 ;  J. 
Q.  Adams's  opinion  of,  226 ;  at- 
titude of,  toward  Atherton  reso- 
lutions,  229 

Wood,  Major,  part  taken  by,  in 
battle  of  the  Thames,   36 

Woodall,  Mrs.  H.  H.,  acknowledg- 
ments to,  xi 

Worthington,  W.,  Old  Court  op- 
posed by,   46 

Zane,   Ebenezer,   trail  of,   9,   207 


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